The Board denied service connection for lung cancer, squamous cell cancer of the lymph nodes of the neck, and prostate cancer. The decision also denied DIC benefits due to lack of evidence supporting exposure to herbicides or other environmental toxins that could have caused these conditions.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's service records did not show any confirmed service in Vietnam or near the Korean DMZ where herbicide exposure is presumed. There was no credible evidence provided to substantiate claims of such exposures.
- Claimed conditions
- lung cancer, squamous cell cancer of the lymph nodes of the neck, prostate cancer
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 10, 2020
- Citation
- 20002265
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,421 · Granted: 29% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 20002265.
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Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for a higher evaluation of his service-connected chronic fatigue and weakness due to chemotherapy and radiation treatment for lung cancer is granted, with an evaluation of 60 percent.,The Veteran's claim for a compensable rating for residuals of lung cancer from May 1, 2005 is denied.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for diabetes mellitus, prostate cancer, visual impairment, hypertension, and erectile dysfunction due to lack of exposure to herbicide agents during service. The Veteran's claims were not granted.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for service connection for prostate cancer, bone cancer, and lymph node cancer has been granted. The prostate cancer is presumed due to herbicide agent exposure during service at RTAFB Takhli. Bone cancer is secondary to the service-connected prostate cancer. Lymph node cancer is also considered secondary to prostate cancer.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for diabetes mellitus, prostate cancer, ischemic heart disease, right lower extremity peripheral artery disease, left lower extremity peripheral artery disease, and hypertension as the evidence did not establish an in-service event or exposure to herbicide agents.
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