Citation Nr: 0811546 Decision Date: 04/08/08 Archive Date: 04/23/08 DOCKET NO. 05-37 509 ) DATE ) ) On appeal from the Department of Veterans Affairs Regional Office in Detroit, Michigan THE ISSUE Entitlement to service connection for squamous cell carcinoma, secondary to herbicide exposure. REPRESENTATION Appellant represented by: Disabled American Veterans ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD J. Meawad, Associate Counsel INTRODUCTION The veteran served on active duty from June 1947 to June 1975. This matter comes before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal from a July 2005 rating decision of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO) in Augusta, Maine, that denied the above claim. The appeal is REMANDED to the RO via the Appeals Management Center (AMC), in Washington, DC. VA will notify the appellant if further action is required. REMAND The veteran served in Vietnam and is therefore presumed to have been exposed to Agent Orange. During the January 2005 VA examination, the veteran was diagnosed as having squamous cell cancer affecting the bridge of his nose. The examiner stated that she could not exclusively state that the veteran's skin conditions were a direct result of Agent Orange exposure. However, she did opine that there was as least as likely as not a probability that the Agent Orange exposure had rendered him prone to squamous cell carcinoma on the bridge of the nose. The claims file was not available for review. The veteran's representative argued that this VA examination indicated that there was a probability that the claimed condition could be associated with Agent Orange exposure and the claim should be remanded for another examination. See Appellant's Brief, dated October 2006. The Board agrees. On remand, the veteran should be afforded a VA examination to obtain a medical opinion as to whether his squamous cell carcinoma is related to service and the claims file should be made available to the examiner for review. Such an opinion is necessary for a determination on the merits of the claim. See 38 C.F.R. § 3.159 (c)(4); 38 U.S.C.A. § 5103A(d). Accordingly, the case is REMANDED for the following action: 1. Schedule the veteran for a VA examination by an appropriate physician. The claims file must be made available to the examiner for review prior to the examination. All necessary tests should be conducted and the examiner should review the results of any testing prior to completion of the report. Based on the examination and review of the record, the examiner is requested to provide an opinion as to the diagnosis, date of onset, and etiology of any skin disorder found to be present. The examiner should state whether it is at least as likely as not (i.e., whether there is at least a 50 percent probability) that any current skin disorder had its onset during active service or is related to any in-service disease or injury, including from herbicide exposure or other toxins. A detailed rationale for any opinion expressed should be provided. 2. Then, readjudicate the claim on appeal, with application of all appropriate laws and regulations and consideration of any additional information obtained. If the decision with respect to the claim remains adverse to the appellant, he and his representative should be furnished a supplemental statement of the case and afforded a reasonable period of time within which to respond thereto. The appellant has the right to submit additional evidence and argument on the matter or matters the Board has remanded. Kutscherousky v. West, 12 Vet. App. 369 (1999). This claim must be afforded expeditious treatment. The law requires that all claims that are remanded by the Board of Veterans' Appeals or by the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims for additional development or other appropriate action must be handled in an expeditious manner. See 38 U.S.C.A. §§ 5109B, 7112 (West Supp. 2007). _________________________________________________ M. E. LARKIN Veterans Law Judge, Board of Veterans' Appeals Under 38 U.S.C.A. § 7252 (West 2002), only a decision of the Board of Veterans' Appeals is appealable to the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims. This remand is in the nature of a preliminary order and does not constitute a decision of the Board on the merits of your appeal. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1100(b) (2007).