The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for cause of death due to in-service exposure to Agent Orange, as well as his claims based on service-connected PTSD and/or undiagnosed Type 2 diabetes mellitus. The Board also found that direct service connection was not established.
The deciding factor: The medical opinions provided by VA physicians were against the Veteran's contentions, finding no link between pancreatic cancer, service-connected PTSD, or service-connected conditions to his death from pancreatic cancer.
- Claimed conditions
- Pancreatic cancer, Type 2 diabetes mellitus
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Agent Orange / herbicides
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 21, 2022
- Citation
- 22003210
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 22003210.
What this means for you
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Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for a higher level of SMC was denied as the Board found that he is already in receipt of SMC at the (l) rate based on need for regular aid and attendance due to service-connected disabilities, including coronary artery disease with congestive heart failure. A second award of SMC at the (l) rate based on need for regular aid and attendance was not warranted.
- Granted
The Board vacates the September 2022 decision denying service connection for type 2 diabetes mellitus due to the passage of the PACT Act, which expanded presumptive exposure to herbicides. The Veteran's service was not found to be in offshore Vietnam or any other location where herbicide exposure is presumed. As a result, his claim for service connection cannot be substantiated.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the Veteran's death from pancreatic cancer may be service-connected due to environmental exposures in service, and thus remands for a medical opinion on this issue. The DIC benefits claim is also remanded.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death due to pancreatic cancer, finding that it was caused by herbicide agent exposure and the service-connected diabetes mellitus. The decision resolves reasonable doubt in favor of the appellant.
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