The Veteran's appeal was dismissed due to his death prior to a decision being made.
The deciding factor: The Veteran died during the pendency of his appeal, and appellants' claims do not survive their deaths.
- Claimed conditions
- metastatic cancer, advanced adenocarcinoma of the small intestine
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 12, 2024
- Citation
- A24031162
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 A24031162.
What this means for you
A dismissal means the Board did not decide the issue on its merits — usually because it was withdrawn or had become moot. It says more about procedure than about whether a claim like this can win.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient medical opinion regarding whether the Veteran's throat cancer, which was caused by asbestos exposure in service, led to his fatal metastatic cancer. The VA is instructed to obtain a new VA opinion addressing these theories.
- Granted
The Veteran's death was caused by metastatic cancer and transitional cell cancer of the bladder, which are presumed to be due to exposure to herbicide agents during his service in Guam. The Board granted service connection for the cause of death based on this presumption.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence regarding the Veteran's cause of death and his exposure claims. The VA will need to verify the Veteran's service in Vietnam, assess asbestos exposure, and provide a medical opinion on whether any of these exposures contributed to the Veteran's death.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence regarding the cause of death, specifically whether the Veteran's metastatic cancer was related to his service-connected herbicide exposure.
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