The Board denied service connection for rectal cancer as secondary to exposure to ionizing radiation and the cause of death due to colorectal cancer. The decision found that there was no in-service exposure to ionizing radiation, and thus, it could not be determined that the Veteran's rectal cancer was caused by his military service.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the Veteran's actual dose of ionizing radiation during his active duty service was 0 rem, based on all relevant evidence of record. Since this dose did not exceed 10 rem above natural background, it was unlikely that the rectal cancer was caused by exposure to ionizing radiation during military service.
- Claimed conditions
- rectal cancer, atriial fibrillation, acute blood loss, rectourethral fistula
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 5, 2021
- Citation
- 21040499
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 21040499.
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- Denied
The Veteran's claims for hypertension, CHF and ventricular arrhythmia, atrial fibrillation, diabetic peripheral neuropathy of the right lower extremity affecting the femoral nerve, and diabetic peripheral neuropathy of the left lower extremity affecting the femoral nerve were denied as there is no evidence that these conditions arose prior to July 31, 2024.,The effective dates for service connection for CHF and ventricular arrhythmia, atrial fibrillation, diabetic peripheral neuropathy of the right lower extremity affecting the femoral nerve, and diabetic peripheral neuropathy of the left lower extremity affecting the femoral nerve were denied as there is no evidence that these conditions arose prior to July 31, 2024.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to errors in obtaining relevant private treatment records and VA opinions, which were not sufficient for a decision on service connection.
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