The Board has determined that the Veteran's hepatitis C, which caused his death from hepatocellular carcinoma, was related to service exposure without appropriate personal protective equipment. As a result, the cause of the Veteran's death is now considered service-connected.
The deciding factor: The Veteran had potential for blood exposure as a dental technician during service and developed hepatitis C at some point after service, leading to his death from hepatocellular carcinoma.
- Claimed conditions
- hepatocellular carcinoma, hepatitis C, cirrhosis of the liver
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 27, 2024
- Citation
- 24012873
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 24012873.
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 Board denied service connection for hepatitis C, jaundice, hypogeusia, and hyposmia as there was no evidence of a current disability during the pendency of the claim.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board denied service connection for hepatitis C and remanded the claim for a heart disability due to insufficient evidence.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for hepatocellular carcinoma as the evidence did not support a link to in-service exposure or injury.
- Dismissed
The appeals for service connection for various conditions were dismissed due to the Veteran's death.
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