The Veteran's appeal was dismissed due to the death of the appellant, and no service connection decision could be made.
The deciding factor: The appellant died during the pendency of the appeal, thus the Board has no jurisdiction to adjudicate the merits of this appeal at this time.
- Claimed conditions
- myelodysplastic syndrome, right shoulder shrapnel; foreign body
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 21, 2020
- Citation
- 20068223
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,960 · Granted: 36% (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 20068223.
What this means for you
A dismissal means the Board did not decide the issue on its merits — usually because it was withdrawn or had become moot. It says more about procedure than about whether a claim like this can win.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for blood cancer, leukemia, eye disorder, myelodysplastic syndrome, and thrombocytopenia due to a lack of evidence showing these conditions were incurred or aggravated by his military service. The case is remanded for further development.
- Denied
The Veteran's red cell aplasia and myelodysplastic syndrome were not found to be related to service, specifically exposure at Camp Lejeune. The Board determined that the presumptive service connection for contaminated water exposure did not apply due to insufficient time spent at Camp Lejeune.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's cause of death is attributed to myelodysplastic syndrome, which the Board finds was not service-connected. The claim will be remanded for further investigation into whether exposure to herbicide agents during service caused or aggravated these conditions.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for service connection for a blood/bone marrow disorder, including myelodysplastic syndrome, leukopenia, and neutropenia, is being remanded due to the submission of new and relevant evidence. The Board acknowledges that the Veteran was exposed to Agent Orange during his military service in Vietnam.
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