The Board denied the claims for Dependency and Indemnity Compensation under 38 U.S.C.� 1318, Survivors Pension, and service connection for the Veteran's cause of death.
The deciding factor: There was no evidence to support a link between the Veteran's service or any service-connected disability and his causes of death: cardiopulmonary arrest and pancreatic cancer.
- Claimed conditions
- Cardiopulmonary arrest, Pancreatic cancer
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 14, 2025
- Citation
- A25099232
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 719 · Granted: 54% (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 A25099232.
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
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for cause of death, finding that there is no competent evidence linking any principal or contributory cause of his death to his service.
- Denied
The Veteran's cause of death, listed as cardiopulmonary arrest secondary to myocardial infraction, was not service-connected. The Board found no evidence linking the heart condition to his military service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the Veteran's death from pancreatic cancer may be service-connected due to environmental exposures in service, and thus remands for a medical opinion on this issue. The DIC benefits claim is also remanded.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death due to pancreatic cancer, finding that it was caused by herbicide agent exposure and the service-connected diabetes mellitus. The decision resolves reasonable doubt in favor of the appellant.
Free starter guide for your own claim
Reading this because you were denied or under-rated? Get the plain-English next steps — your appeal options, the deadline that protects you, and how appeals like yours turn out. One email, no spam.
We will only use this to send the guide. No spam, unsubscribe any time. We never sell your information.
We are not the VA. Veterans’ Rights is an independent resource built for veterans. We are not the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, not part of the government, and not endorsed by any government agency.
This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.