The Board remands the claim for service connection of squamous cell carcinoma of the tonsils, including residual loss of voice and required use of feeding tube, to obtain a supplemental medical opinion.
The deciding factor: The November 2023 VA medical opinion was found inadequate as it did not address the aggravation aspect of secondary service connection and failed to consider new evidence submitted by the Veteran regarding toxic exposures during his military service.
- Claimed conditions
- squamous cell carcinoma of the tonsils, residual loss of voice, required use of feeding tube
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 3, 2025
- Citation
- A25048686
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,812 · Granted: 30% (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 A25048686.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for service connection for squamous cell carcinoma of the tonsils has been granted, and a VA examination is required to determine its etiology.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's squamous cell carcinoma of the tonsils is granted. The claims for service connection for secondary conditions are remanded due to a lack of medical opinion.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence regarding whether the Veteran's squamous cell carcinoma of the tonsils and tongue is related to his service, specifically exposure to herbicides in Vietnam.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's benign thyroid nodule is being remanded for an addendum opinion to determine if it was aggravated by his service-connected squamous cell carcinoma of the tonsils.
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