The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for bile duct carcinoma and idiopathic acute pancreatitis without necrosis or infection, with pre-diabetes as cause of death. The evidence is in balance regarding whether these conditions are related to active service, specifically exposure to herbicides during service.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner concluded that the Veteran's exposure to herbicides was at least as likely as not the cause of his bile duct cancer based on medical treatises and data supporting a causal relationship between dioxin exposure and bile duct cancer.
- Claimed conditions
- bile duct carcinoma, idiopathic acute pancreatitis without necrosis or infection
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Agent Orange / herbicides
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 6, 2026
- Citation
- A26030948
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 A26030948.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection of the Veteran's cause of death due to a presumed exposure to herbicides during his service in Vietnam.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection due to insufficient evidence and new opinions are needed regarding the relationship between the Veteran's bile duct cancer, liver cancer, and death. The claims will be reviewed with consideration of diabetes, Agent Orange exposure, liver fluke exposure, gallbladder surgery, and malaria.
- Granted
The Board of Veterans' Appeals has granted service connection for PTSD and Mood Disorders, both presumed conditions under the PACT Act.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for diabetes mellitus type II with erectile dysfunction was denied as the evidence did not show that he had been diagnosed and manifested to at least a 10 percent disability rating on or prior to May 8, 2001.
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