The Board denied service connection for the cause of death due to metastatic adenocarcinoma of the colon, finding that there was no evidence linking it to service-connected disabilities or presumed exposure to Agent Orange.
The deciding factor: The medical opinions found no direct link between the Veteran's service-connected conditions and his cancer, nor any evidence of herbicide agent exposure during service.
- Claimed conditions
- metastatic adenocarcinoma of the colon
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 3, 2020
- Citation
- 20070805
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 20070805.
What this means for you
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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 remanded the case due to insufficient evidence regarding whether the Veteran's cause of death was misdiagnosed and if he had soft tissue sarcoma instead. The RO is instructed to obtain an addendum medical opinion on these issues.
- Denied
The Veteran's cause of death, metastatic adenocarcinoma of the colon, was not service connected as due to exposure to herbicide agents in Vietnam or secondary to a previously service-connected condition.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient medical opinion regarding the cause of death and the potential impact of herbicide exposure on the Veteran's condition.
- Granted
The Board finds that the Veteran's asbestos exposure during active duty service contributed to his death by causing respiratory impairment, which affected his response to anti-cancer treatments.
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