The Board has remanded the case due to inadequate medical opinions regarding whether the Veteran's oropharyngeal cancer is related to herbicide exposure in service. The VA examiner needs to address the Veteran’s risk factors, including his history of smoking and quitting.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner failed to adequately consider the Veteran's history of smoking cessation when providing an opinion on the relationship between the oropharyngeal cancer and herbicide exposure.
- Claimed conditions
- squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue, squamous cell carcinoma of the pharynx
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- Agent Orange / herbicides
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 6, 2020
- Citation
- 20064986
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.
- Granted
The Board granted an earlier effective date of February 1, 2021, for the award of service connection for squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue and related disabilities.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue and assigned a 20 percent evaluation, but denied service connection for osteoporosis, spinal stenosis, neurocognitive disorder with Alzheimer's, hypertension, and TDIU.
- Granted
The veteran's claim for service connection of squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue is granted. The decision was based on evidence showing that the cancer is related to in-service exposures to Agent Orange and asbestos.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue and its secondary conditions, but dismissed the appeal for other issues due to withdrawal by the Veteran.
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