The Veteran's death was attributed to multiple conditions, including pneumonia and atrial fibrillation. The Board has ordered additional development regarding the cause of death and service connection for his germ cell tumor.
The deciding factor: The medical opinion is needed to determine if the Veteran’s germ cell tumor had its origin in service or is related to an incident of service, specifically asbestos exposure.
- Claimed conditions
- germ cell tumor of the mediastinum, bilateral pneumonia, atrial fibrillation, superior vena cava syndrome, sepsis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 11, 2020
- Citation
- 20053088
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 20053088.
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.
- Denied
The Veteran's cause of death, kidney cancer, is not service-connected. The Board found that the Veteran's cause of death was not related to his military service or a service-connected disability.
- Granted
The Veteran's cause of death, metastatic lung cancer, was found to be related to service and caused or contributed substantially to the Veteran's death. The Board granted entitlement to service connection for the Veteran's cause of death.
- Granted
The Veteran's cause of death was determined to be related to service-connected conditions, specifically metastatic colon cancer and coronary artery disease. The Board granted the claim for service connection based on the evidence provided.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for atrial fibrillation and distressed heart (previously claimed as irregular heartbeat) based on evidence of a link to the Veteran's military service.
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