The Veteran's heart disease, prostate cancer, and bone cancer secondary to prostate cancer have been granted effective dates of October 26, 2021, November 17, 2021, and November 17, 2021, respectively.,A higher level of special monthly compensation (SMC) is remanded.
The deciding factor: The effective dates for the Veteran's service connection claims are based on the liberalizing change in law provided by the PACT Act of 2022, which created additional presumptive diseases and duties to address non-presumptive diseases involving toxic exposures. The earlier effective dates are granted as they align with the date entitlement arose or the date of receipt of the intent to file a claim.
- Claimed conditions
- Arteriosclerotic heart disease (coronary artery disease), Prostate cancer, Bone cancer
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 12, 2026
- Citation
- A26022732
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 A26022732.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's arteriosclerotic heart disease is rated at 100% effective October 25, 2024. His prostate cancer residuals are rated at 60% effective October 25, 2024.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for a compensable rating for monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS) is denied. The claim for service connection for bone cancer is also denied.
- Granted
The Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder and prostate cancer are granted service connection, with the latter requiring a VA examination to address exposure to burn pits.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for service connection for hearing loss in the right ear has been denied. The Board found that there is no current diagnosis of right ear hearing loss and thus, cannot establish a link to service. For prostate cancer, the Veteran's claim is remanded as VA did not provide an opinion regarding whether his condition may be related to service due to toxic exposure.
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