The Board has found that there is not substantial compliance with the prior remand directives and thus requires further development for a VA medical opinion regarding the Veteran's skin disability of the neck, including whether it is related to in-service exposure to herbicide agents.
The deciding factor: The Board finds the previous VA medical opinion inadequate as the rationale provided does not connect the finding of dioxin being carcinogenic to humans with the conclusion that the Veteran’s skin disability was caused by in-service exposure to herbicide agents.
- Claimed conditions
- squamous cell carcinoma, skin disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 29, 2020
- Citation
- 20081277
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.
- Partly granted
The appeal for service connection for skin cancer was dismissed due to untimeliness, while the claim for squamous cell carcinoma was granted.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for a right foot disability, left foot disability, and skin disability to obtain additional medical opinions.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for asthma and remanded the claims for sinus disability, bilateral hip disability, right shoulder disability, hypertension, sleep apnea, diabetes mellitus, skin disability, back disability, bilateral neurological disability of the upper extremities, and bilateral neurological disability of the lower extremities.
- Partly granted
The Board dismissed the claim for service connection for headaches and remanded claims for service connection for various other conditions, including open angle glaucoma, sensorineural hearing loss, asthma, heart disease, bladder cancer, and squamous cell carcinoma.
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