The Board denied service connection for myelodysplasia syndrome and the cause of death, finding that there was no evidence linking these conditions to the Veteran's military service or exposure to herbicides.
The deciding factor: The weight of the evidence did not establish a nexus between the Veteran’s in-service presumptive exposure to Agent Orange and his diagnosed myelodysplasia syndrome. The Board also found insufficient evidence to link the cause of death (myelodysplasia syndrome with pancytopenia) to active service.
- Claimed conditions
- myelodysplasia syndrome, pancytopenia
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 21, 2020
- Citation
- 20055384
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 20055384.
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Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient information regarding the Veteran's exposure to herbicide agents and other environmental hazards during service, as well as a need for a toxic exposure risk activity (TERA) memorandum and opinion.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for an initial compensable disability rating for pancytopenia and radiation induced anemia due to a need for further examination.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection for myelodysplasia syndrome to obtain a medical examination and opinion, as the previous VA examination was found inadequate.
- Granted
The Veteran's current diagnosis of pancytopenia, including myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), is due to his exposure to herbicide agents in service. The Board granted service connection for the Veteran's pancytopenia based on this exposure.
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