The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for prostate cancer and coronary artery disease as secondary to herbicide agent exposure due to a lack of clarity regarding his service in Vietnam. The Veteran served aboard the U.S.S. Valley Forge, but it is unclear if he was within the 12 nautical mile territorial sea during the relevant timeframe.
The deciding factor: The Board found that further development is needed to determine whether the Veteran's service aboard the U.S.S. Valley Forge between May and August 1962 included time within the 12 nautical mile territorial sea of Vietnam, which would affect his eligibility for presumptive service connection under the Agent Orange Act.
- Claimed conditions
- prostate cancer, coronary artery disease
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 21, 2020
- Citation
- 20004243
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.
- Dismissed
The appeal for a compensable rating for left ear hearing loss, service connection for right ear hearing loss, and bilateral vision condition was dismissed. Service connection for hypertension, congestive heart failure, and coronary artery disease was denied.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various conditions, including prostate cancer and related disabilities, urinary incontinence, sleep apnea, hypertension, varicose veins, lumbar spine disability, hip arthritis, shoulder arthritis, ankle arthritis, knee strain, knee replacement, and hand arthritis. The only condition granted was a 10 percent rating for a fracture of the right proximal first metacarpal.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for prostate cancer, related to in-service exposures at Camp Lejeune.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran is granted an effective date of April 25, 2014, for service connection for prostate cancer.
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