The Board has remanded the cases due to inadequate reasoning in the July 2014 VA medical opinion regarding service connection for pancreatic cancer and exposure at Camp Lejeune. The cause of death claim is also remanded as it is intertwined with the service connection claim.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the July 2014 VA medical opinion was based on incorrect factual premises (the Veteran's time at Camp Lejeune) and lacked adequate rationale for its conclusions.
- Claimed conditions
- pancreatic cancer, lung tumor
- How they argued it
- Aggravation of a pre-existing condition
- Exposure basis
- Camp Lejeune water
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- June 3, 2020
- Citation
- 20038018
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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 20038018.
What this means for you
A remand sends an issue back for more development, often a new examination or missing records. It does not award the benefit or decide the final outcome. The original decision explains the additional work ordered.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Veteran's cause of death was not caused by a disability incurred or aggravated in service, and the Board denied the claim for service connection.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has dismissed the appeal for accrued benefits and has remanded the issue of service connection for cause of death, as there was a duty to assist error related to obtaining a medical nexus opinion regarding in-service herbicide agent exposure.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has granted service connection for liver cancer, lung cancer, and pancreatic cancer, finding that the evidence is at least in equipoise as to whether these conditions are attributable to the Veteran's in-service exposure to herbicide agents (Agent Orange).
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's spouse is seeking to be substituted as the appellant for claims of service connection filed by the Veteran in August 2017. The AOJ has not yet determined whether she meets the requirements to substitute, and this issue must be remanded.
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