The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient medical opinion regarding the Veteran's benign schwannoma and its relation to his service, specifically his in-service herbicide exposure.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner did not provide an adequate opinion on whether the Veteran's benign schwannoma is related to his active service, including his conceded in-service herbicide exposure.
- Claimed conditions
- benign schwannoma
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- January 31, 2023
- Citation
- 23005991
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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 23005991.
What this means for you
A remand sends an issue back for more development, often a new examination or missing records. It does not award the benefit or decide the final outcome. The original decision explains the additional work ordered.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Veteran's non-malignant schwannoma, a benign tumor of the spinal cord, is found to be related to his military service and service connection is granted.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board granted service connection for benign schwannoma and hypertension, both presumed to be related to the Veteran's exposure to herbicide agents in Vietnam. Service connection was also granted for peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral lower extremities with initial evaluations of 10 percent prior to January 4, 2005, which were increased to 30 percent effective January 4, 2005.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected lumbar myositis, psychoneurosis and conversion hysteria, residuals of shrapnel wounds of the left thigh and pelvis with retained foreign bodies and scars, and residuals of shell fragment wounds of the right thigh and left leg. The veteran was also denied entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an initial evaluation in excess of 10 percent for his service-connected coronary artery disease, finding that the evidence did not support a higher rating based on the severity of his condition.
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