The Veteran's claims for squamous cell carcinoma and back disability were denied, while his claim for right leg disability was not addressed. The appeal is granted in part (squamous cell carcinoma) but denied overall.
The deciding factor: The evidence did not establish a current diagnosis of the claimed conditions or a causal relationship to service.
- Claimed conditions
- squamous cell carcinoma, degenerative arthritis of the spine, intervertebral disc syndrome
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Camp Lejeune water
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 18, 2020
- Citation
- 20074001
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 715 · Granted: 43% (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 20074001.
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal was dismissed due to their death during the pendency of the appeal.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to predecisional duty-to-assist errors, including inadequate medical opinions and missed VA examinations. The Veteran's claim for service connection for a back condition is being returned to the RO for further action.
- Granted
The Veteran's squamous cell carcinoma is granted as secondary to his service-connected eczema and psoriasis. The initial compensable evaluation for toenail psoriasis remains denied.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for service connection for degenerative arthritis of the spine was granted. The claims for service connection for obstructive sleep apnea and residuals of head injuries and concussions are remanded.
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