The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for tonsillar cancer, finding that there was no evidence linking his current condition to his presumed exposure to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune during his active duty.
The deciding factor: The April 2015 VA examiner's medical opinion did not demonstrate a clear relationship between the Veteran's currently diagnosed tonsillar cancer and his presumed exposure to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune from May 1985 to July 1985, and other evidence contradicted this claim.
- Claimed conditions
- tonsillar cancer
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Camp Lejeune water
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 9, 2022
- Citation
- 22013221
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 22013221.
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board has denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for tonsillar cancer (claimed as throat and respiratory cancer) due to a lack of evidence showing that his condition began during active service or is related to an in-service injury or disease, including presumed exposure to herbicide agents and contaminated water at Camp Lejeune.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for service connection for tonsillar cancer and metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck are remanded due to a duty to assist error. The Board finds that VA failed to provide a VA examination prior to the May 2020 rating decision on appeal.
- Granted
Service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death is granted due to his service-connected tonsillar cancer being identified as the immediate cause of death.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for service connection for tonsillar cancer was granted with an effective date of January 13, 2020.
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