The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient medical opinions regarding the Veteran's skin disabilities, including squamous cell carcinoma. The case is also being remanded for VA to obtain relevant treatment records and provide an updated opinion on whether any current skin disability is related to service.
The deciding factor: The medical opinions provided were inadequate as they did not address all of the Veteran's diagnosed skin conditions or consider the possibility that some skin cancers may be related to Agent Orange exposure, even if it is not presumed for squamous cell carcinoma.
- Claimed conditions
- squamous cell carcinoma, lentigo, actinic keratosis, seborrheic keratosis, nevus, dermatofibroma
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Agent Orange / herbicides
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 20, 2022
- Citation
- 22002980
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 22002980.
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.
- 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 Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for actinic keratosis, finding that his condition had its onset during active duty and is related to exposure to harmful sun while deployed in Afghanistan.
- Dismissed
The Board has dismissed the Veteran's appeals for service connection of squamous cell carcinoma, basal cell carcinoma, and actinic keratosis as the appeal is considered duplicative of a previous decision.
- Partly granted
The Board has determined that the severance of service connection for neoplasm hard and soft tissue of the mouth was improper, as there is conflicting medical evidence regarding the cause of the condition. The Veteran's conditions are related to his active duty service.
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