The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for cause of death, finding that his leukemia was likely caused by exposure to herbicide agents during service. The Board also found reasonable doubt in favor of the appellant and granted the claim.
The deciding factor: The private medical opinion provided a positive nexus between the Veteran's leukemia and exposure to Agent Orange, which is sufficient to grant service connection for cause of death.
- Claimed conditions
- sepsis syndrome, refractory metabolic acidosis, probable small bowel ischemic, chemo induced pancytopenia, relapsed acute myelogenous leukemia
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- Agent Orange / herbicides
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 29, 2024
- Citation
- A24021904
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 A24021904.
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 the claim of service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, finding that there was no evidence linking his death to service or exposure to Agent Orange. The preponderance of the evidence did not support a finding that any disability caused by service-connected conditions contributed to his death.
- Denied
The Veteran's cause of death, cardiorespiratory arrest due to sepsis syndrome, is not related to his active service or exposure to ionizing radiation. The Board finds the evidence does not support a finding that the Veteran’s death was caused by his military service.
- Denied
The Board denied the appellant's petition to reopen her claim for service connection for the cause of the Veteran’s death, finding no new and material evidence. The decision is final as it was affirmed by the Court.
- Granted
The Veteran's death is considered to be service-connected, but the cause of his death—sepsis syndrome—is not attributed to his service or a service-connected condition. The Board found that medications taken for his lumbar spine disability did not contribute to his death.
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