The Board granted service connection for the cause of death, finding that the Veteran's metastatic colon cancer was related to his exposure to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune during active service.
The deciding factor: The private medical opinion from Dr. S.R.B., who specializes in toxicology and experimental therapeutics, concluded that the Veteran's exposures while at Camp Lejeune at least as likely as not caused his death cancer, which led to his death.
- Claimed conditions
- metastatic colon cancer
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Camp Lejeune water
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 17, 2025
- Citation
- A25053313
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for eligibility for specially adapted housing, a special home adaptation grant, and financial assistance in purchasing an automobile or other conveyance and adaptive equipment. The claim of CUE in the September 14, 2017, rating decision was also denied.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for the Veteran's cause of death, which was metastatic colon cancer, finding that it was related to his in-service asbestos exposure.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, finding that metastatic colon cancer was related to his conceded in-service herbicide exposure under the PACT Act. However, DIC benefits were denied as the Veteran did not meet the criteria for 38 U.S.C. § 1318.
- Remanded (sent back)
The appeal is remanded to correct errors in the duty-to-assist process. The Board will consider new evidence on whether the Veteran's service-connected diabetes contributed to his death.
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