The Veteran's respiratory cancer is presumed to be due to herbicide agent exposure while serving in the Republic of Vietnam, and his service connection claim for this condition has been granted.
The deciding factor: The Veteran served within 12 nautical miles of the coast of Vietnam during a time when he was aboard ship, which constitutes service in the Republic of Vietnam. His respiratory cancer is presumed to be related to herbicide agent exposure.
- Claimed conditions
- respiratory cancer
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Burn pits / airborne hazards
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 27, 2020
- Citation
- 20006658
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,614 · Granted: 35% (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 20006658.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board has denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for tonsillar cancer (claimed as throat and respiratory cancer) due to a lack of evidence showing that his condition began during active service or is related to an in-service injury or disease, including presumed exposure to herbicide agents and contaminated water at Camp Lejeune.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for respiratory cancer as secondary to the Veteran's already service-connected throat cancer.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for new VA medical opinions to address the etiology of the Veteran's respiratory cancer and skin cancer, as well as further development regarding potential exposures in service.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for a respiratory cancer of any type, lymphoma, and sarcoidosis as the evidence did not demonstrate current diagnoses or a nexus to active duty.
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