The Veteran's claims for earlier effective dates prior to March 14, 2017, for service connection of Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma (NHL), secondary loss of all teeth, and secondary loss of lower anterior ridge of mandible have been denied. The effective date has not been assigned as the evidence did not support direct service connection at the time of the August 2017 rating decision.
The deciding factor: The evidence did not show a nexus between the Veteran's current disabilities and his in-service exposure to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune, which was required for direct service connection. The effective date has been assigned based on the liberalizing regulation that took effect on March 14, 2017.
- Claimed conditions
- Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma, Loss of all teeth, Loss of lower anterior ridge of mandible
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Camp Lejeune water
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- December 31, 2024
- Citation
- 24034857
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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 24034857.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Veteran's service connection for leukemia, characterized as CLL, was improperly severed. Service connection for T-cell LGL leukemia is restored. The severance of service connection for NHL is upheld.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has restored a 100 percent rating for the Veteran's non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, effective April 1, 2025.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Veteran's SMC was granted at the intermediate level between 38 U.S.C. § 1114(m) and (n) due to additional disabilities including peripheral neuropathies, tinnitus, hearing loss, and lymphoma.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Veteran's non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma was granted a 100% rating effective February 8, 2019.
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