The Veteran's cause of death is remanded, and his increased rating claims are referred to the RO for further action.
The deciding factor: Medical records about the Veteran's death have a reasonably possibility of substantiating the Appellant's claim for service connection for cause of death. The VA must make reasonable efforts to assist in obtaining these records.
- Claimed conditions
- intrahepatic bile duct carcinoma
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 16, 2022
- Citation
- 22009114
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 22009114.
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 Board granted service connection for the Veteran's cause of death, intrahepatic bile duct carcinoma, due to presumed exposure to burn pits under the PACT Act.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection of the Veteran's cause of death due to a presumed exposure to herbicides during his service in Vietnam.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection due to insufficient evidence and new opinions are needed regarding the relationship between the Veteran's bile duct cancer, liver cancer, and death. The claims will be reviewed with consideration of diabetes, Agent Orange exposure, liver fluke exposure, gallbladder surgery, and malaria.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected residuals of patent ductus arteriosus repair were found to have contributed substantially and materially to his hypertensive heart disease, which was the cause of death. The Board granted service connection for the cause of death.
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