The Veteran's claims for esophageal and stomach cancer are remanded due to insufficient evidence regarding in-service herbicide exposure. The Board will ask the Veteran to provide details of his alleged exposure, verify it through VA procedures, or document if sufficient information is not provided.
The deciding factor: Insufficient documentation of in-service herbicide exposure prevents a determination on service connection for esophageal and stomach cancer.
- Claimed conditions
- esophageal cancer, stomach cancer
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- Burn pits / airborne hazards
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 14, 2020
- Citation
- 20002337
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection for the Veteran's cause of death to correct predecisional duty to assist errors, including obtaining additional records and a medical nexus opinion.
- Dismissed
The Board dismissed the appeal for service connection for diabetes, glaucoma, left foot and toe tingling and numbness sensation, left hand and fingers tingling and numbness sensation, right foot and toe tingling and numbness sensation, right hand and fingers tingling and numbness sensation, and stomach cancer as moot.
- Partly granted
Service connection for prostate cancer on an accrued basis was granted based on the benefit-of-the-doubt doctrine, finding competent and credible evidence at least approximately balanced between service-connected prostatitis and prostate cancer. Service connection was denied for stomach cancer, colon cancer, skin cancer, the Veteran's cause of death, and dependency indemnity compensation benefits.
- Granted
The Veteran's esophageal cancer is granted service connection due to herbicide exposure during his service in the Republic of Vietnam.
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