The Board denied service connection for the Veteran's cause of death, liver failure due to cardiac cirrhosis, as it was not caused by or substantially contributed to by an event, injury, or disease incurred in active military service, including presumed herbicide exposure.
The deciding factor: The evidence did not support that the Veteran's listed causes of death were caused by his presumed in-service exposure to herbicide agents. The primary cause of death was attributed to obstructive sleep apnea and its complications, rather than any service-connected condition or herbicide exposure.
- Claimed conditions
- cardiac cirrhosis, liver failure
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- Agent Orange / herbicides
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 5, 2024
- Citation
- 24000846
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 denied the appellant's claim for entitlement to service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, as the evidence did not support a finding that the Veteran's heart condition, liver condition, or hepatitis C began during active service or were otherwise related to an in-service injury, event, or disease.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death due to liver failure and complications from a liver transplant, finding that there was no evidence linking these conditions to his military service or any service-connected disabilities.
- Denied
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities did not contribute to his death, and the Board found that liposarcoma was not a contributory cause of sepsis. The Board denied service connection for the cause of death.
- Remanded (sent back)
The veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection were remanded for further development, including a possible RO hearing or informal conference.
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