The Board has granted the Appellant's claim to reopen her previously denied service connection for cause of death, finding that new and material evidence supports a link between the Veteran's pancreatic cancer and his in-service herbicide agent exposure. The Board also found the evidence in relative balance as to whether the cancer was associated with service.
The deciding factor: The Board determined that the evidence is in relative balance regarding whether the Veteran's pancreatic cancer may have been associated with his service, including his conceded herbicide agent exposure.
- Claimed conditions
- pancreatic cancer
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- Agent Orange / herbicides
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 30, 2024
- Citation
- 24004662
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,062 · Granted: 34% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 24004662.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Veteran's cause of death was not caused by a disability incurred or aggravated in service, and the Board denied the claim for service connection.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has dismissed the appeal for accrued benefits and has remanded the issue of service connection for cause of death, as there was a duty to assist error related to obtaining a medical nexus opinion regarding in-service herbicide agent exposure.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for liver cancer, lung cancer, and pancreatic cancer, finding that the evidence is at least in equipoise as to whether these conditions are attributable to the Veteran's in-service exposure to herbicide agents (Agent Orange).
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's spouse is seeking to be substituted as the appellant for claims of service connection filed by the Veteran in August 2017. The AOJ has not yet determined whether she meets the requirements to substitute, and this issue must be remanded.
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