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Denied

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an initial compensable rating for a malignant melanoma scar of the posterior trunk, as the evidence did not show that the scar covered an area of 144 square inches or greater.

The deciding factor: The September 2023 VA examination found the posterior trunk scar to cover only 0.25 sq. cm and was not painful or unstable, thus not meeting criteria for a compensable rating under applicable diagnostic codes.

Claimed conditions
malignant melanoma scar of the back (posterior trunk)
How they argued it
Direct service connection
Exposure basis
None
Rating assigned
None in this decision
Decision date
March 4, 2025
Citation
A25019580

Veterans Law Judge

Marissa Caylor

Decisions by this judge: 622 · Granted: 17% (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 A25019580.

What this means for you

A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.

What you can do next

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