Citation Nr: 21025564 Decision Date: 04/28/21 Archive Date: 04/28/21 DOCKET NO. 15-39 963 DATE: April 28, 2021 REMANDED Entitlement to service connection for hemangioendothelioma, to include as due to exposure to toxic chemicals, is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty in the United States Navy from April 1973 to April 1975. He served a period of active duty for training from September 1972 to March 1973. This matter comes before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal from a September 2015 rating decision issued by a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO). In March 2018 and October 2020, the matter was remanded for further development and it has since returned for further appellate review. While the Board regrets the delay, additional development is necessary prior to final adjudication. The Veteran contends that his hemangioendothelioma is due to exposure to 1) herbicide agent orange, 2) trichlorethylene (TCE) (industrial solvent), 3) polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB), 4) JP-5 fuel oil, 5) electromagnetic force, 6) x-ray, and 7) ionized radiation during military service. With regards to ionized radiation, the Veteran asserts he was exposed to ionizing radiation while performing his temporary assigned duties at Treasure Island. See November 2018 Lay Statement. He made similar statements in a November 2018 Radiation Risk Activity Information Sheet. Also in November 2018, the Veteran submitted a February 2014 article: Treasure Island cleanup exposes Navy’s mishandling of its nuclear past, alleging that Treasure Island may have stored radioactive waste and industrial toxins. The Veteran’s service personnel file confirms he was stationed at Treasure Island from April 1973 to October 1973. Based on the Veteran’s reports and a review of his personnel records, the Board finds that additional development is necessary to determine whether the Veteran was exposed to ionizing radiation while stationed at Treasure Island. The matters are REMANDED for the following action: 1. Associate the claims file with any outstanding and relevant VA or private treatment records for the hemangioendothelioma claim. 2. Develop the Veteran’s assertion that he was exposed to radiation from April 1973 to October 1973 while stationed at Treasure Island. If evidence of possible exposure to radiation or ionizing radiation is found, obtain a dose assessment and an opinion. If more details are needed, contact the Veteran to request the information. Please review the February 2014 article: Treasure Island cleanup exposes Navy’s mishandling of its nuclear past and the November 2018 Radiation Risk Activity Information Sheet. 3. After completion of the above development, the claims file should be sent to an appropriate examiner to offer an opinion as to whether it is at least as likely as not (50 percent probability or greater) that the current hemangioendothelioma onset during service or is otherwise related to an in-service injury, event, or disease. The examiner must review the claims file. In offering the opinion, the examiner is asked to consider toxic agents identified by the Veteran in the April 2015 service connection claim for hemangioendothelioma, the history of the onset and progression of the disorder, the articles and excerpts submitted by the Veteran regarding toxic exposure, and his lay statements. The need for an examination is left to the discretion of the examiner. A rationale for all opinions offered is requested as adjudicators are precluded from making any medical findings. D. Martz Ames Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals Attorney for the Board M. Mathew The Board’s decision in this case is binding only with respect to the instant matter decided. This decision is not precedential and does not establish VA policies or interpretations of general applicability. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1303.