The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for metastatic renal cell carcinoma, bilateral foot fungus, and bilateral hearing loss due to issues with the VA examinations provided. The claims are being returned for further development.
The deciding factor: The VA examinations relied on inaccurate factual premises and failed to provide an individualized analysis of the Veteran's risk factors for the development of his disabilities in service or outside of service.
- Claimed conditions
- metastatic renal cell carcinoma, bilateral foot fungus
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Burn pits / airborne hazards
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 27, 2024
- Citation
- 24009478
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 24009478.
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.
- Denied
The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection have been denied. The rating in excess of 10 percent for tinnitus is denied, as the evidence does not support a higher rating under the applicable criteria. The claim for a compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss is also denied due to lack of evidence supporting a higher rating based on audiometric results. Service connection for hypertension and bilateral foot fungus are granted with effective dates from May 19, 2020, to August 9, 2022, respectively. The Veteran's claims for service connection regarding left knee pain (status post arthroscopy), right knee pain (status post arthroscopy), low back disability (degenerative arthritis of the spine), left shoulder pain, and right shoulder pain are all granted with effective dates from August 10, 2022. The Veteran's claims for service connection regarding left leg shooting pain and radiculopathy secondary to low back disability and right leg shooting pain and radiculopathy secondary to low back disability remain pending.
- Granted
The Veteran's metastatic renal cell carcinoma is service connected, and it caused the removal of his kidney and a jaw nodule.,Metastatic renal cell cancer led to the removal of the Veteran's left kidney and a metastatic nodule in the parotid gland.
- Dismissed
The appeals for service connection for allergic rhinitis, sinusitis, and bilateral foot fungus, as well as the appeals for SMC pursuant to 38 U.S.C. § 1114(r) and an increased rating for GERD were dismissed due to being already pending at the Board in other appeal streams.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for metastatic renal cell carcinoma, removal of a kidney due to renal cancer, and a metastatic nodule in the jaw for additional development.
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