The Board has determined that the cause of death (acute hypoxemic respiratory failure, malignant pleural effusion, and metastatic cancer) is not related to service or exposure to sunlight in service. The case is being remanded for further development.
The deciding factor: The VA provider's opinion was inadequate as it did not address the progression of the Veteran's melanoma and its potential connection to his lung cancer.
- Claimed conditions
- Acute hypoxemic respiratory failure, Malignant pleural effusion, Metastatic cancer
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- Burn pits / airborne hazards
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 10, 2024
- Citation
- A24065062
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 835 · Granted: 22% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 A24065062.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection of the Veteran's cause of death to obtain a medical opinion regarding the relationship between his in-service pneumonia and his aspiration pneumonia, as well as whether his TBI caused or contributed to his seizures and Parkinson's disease.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims of service connection for cause of the Veteran's death and dependency and indemnity compensation under 38 U.S.C. § 1318, survivors' pension, and accrued benefits due to a lack of an etiology opinion regarding the relationship between the Veteran's acute myeloid leukemia and his in-service exposure to herbicide agents.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims of service connection for cause of the Veteran's death and dependency and indemnity compensation under 38 U.S.C. § 1318, survivors' pension, and accrued benefits due to a lack of an etiology opinion regarding the relationship between the Veteran's acute myeloid leukemia and his in-service exposure to herbicide agents.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran died in January 2019 due to complications from VA medical treatment. The Board is remanding the case for a new examination and opinion regarding whether VA's care was negligent, leading to the Veteran's death.
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