Citation Nr: 21026669 Decision Date: 05/03/21 Archive Date: 05/03/21 DOCKET NO. 18-42 163 DATE: May 3, 2021 REMANDED Entitlement to service connection for thyroid cancer, to include as due to ionizing radiation is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served honorably on active duty in the U.S. Navy from January 1978 to January 1982. The Veteran had subsequent service in the Naval Reserves, with periods of active duty for training (ACDUTRA). This matter comes to the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal from a February 2017 rating decision of a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO). In a July 2019 decision, the Board denied the Veteran's claim. The Veteran appealed that denial to the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (Court). In a September 2020 decision, the Court set aside the Board's July 2019 denial and remanded the matter for further action consistent with the Court's decision. 1. Entitlement to service connection for thyroid cancer, to include as due to ionizing radiation is remanded. This issue is remanded for additional development consistent with the Court's September 2020 decision. The September 2020 Court decision noted that "[a] review of the record reveals that appellant was aboard the U.S.S. Holland until at least December 1981," in contradiction to VA's finding that the Veteran's time aboard ended in June 1981. The Court found the Board failed to account for at least 6 months of possible exposure to ionizing radiation, including an alleged incident with a ballistic missile that occurred in November 1981. The decision instructed the Board to obtain additional evidence if necessary to verify any additional exposure. The Veteran asserts he was exposed to radiation from July 1978 to December 1981 while serving at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard and aboard the U.S.S. Gilmore and U.S.S. Holland. See February 2020 Informal Brief. Those vessels were nuclear powered and carried nuclear armed torpedoes and Poseidon missiles. An October 1981 report of medical history lists the U.S.S. Holland as the examining facility, and an undated service treatment record (STR) lists the duty dates aboard the U.S.S. Holland as January 1980 to December 1981. A Naval Dosimetry report dated January 2017 determined the Veteran was exposed to DDE-Photon radiation from November 1978 to June 1981. The report requested that VA "forward any concerns and supporting documentation from the individual's medical record to Naval Dosimetry Center, so we can update our exposure registry." The Veteran challenges the accuracy of the information provided by the U.S. Naval Dosimetry Center because he was not provided a dosimeter and the report did not consider all periods of exposure. In accordance with the procedures set forth in 3.311(c), the Veteran's exposure history was sent to the Under Secretary for Benefits, who concluded it was unlikely that the thyroid cancer was related to such exposure. The Under Secretary for Benefits observed in a January 2018 letter that the Veteran's maximum exposure while serving aboard the U.S.S Holland, based on figures provided by the service records, including DD Forms 1141, was a dose of 0.001 rem from February 1980 to June 1981; and according to the U.S. Navy Dosimetry Center he was exposed to a dose of .001 rem DDE-Photon radiation from November 1978 to June 1981. Since the July 2019 decision, the Veteran has also submitted additional medical literature indicating that his thyroid cancer is due to the ionizing radiation exposure in service. Overall, remand is necessary to obtain a new dose assessment that considers the potential additional exposure through December 1981 as indicated in the STRs and by the Veteran's testimony. Then, VA should obtain an updated advisory opinion that addresses any changes in the dose assessment as well as the medical literature submitted by the Veteran. If the claim remains denied, VA should issue a supplemental statement of the case that addresses all relevant evidence received since the July 2019 Board decision. The matters are REMANDED for the following action: 1. Obtain any deck logs or other relevant information to verify the Veteran's periods of alleged exposure to ionizing radiation. 2. Obtain an updated dose assessment from the appropriate entity pursuant to 38 C.F.R. § 3.311 that considers the period from January 1980 to December 1981. The relevant evidence to consider includes the STRs listing the Veteran's duty assignment on the U.S.S. Holland from January 1980 to December 1981, the Veteran's testimony of exposure from a November 1981 incident with a Poseidon missile, and his alleged exposures generally due to proximity to nuclear powered engines and nuclear missiles while aboard the U.S.S. Gilmore and U.S.S. Holland. 3. Then, obtain an updated advisory medical opinion as to whether sound scientific and medical evidence supports a conclusion that it is at least as likely as not that the thyroid cancer is due to the in-service radiation exposure or whether there is no reasonable possibility that the disease resulted from such exposure. The advisory medical opinion should address the medical literature referenced by the Veteran in the February 2020 Informal Brief to the Court (included in the Court Decision documents dated September 2020) and in November 2020 correspondence. LAURA E. COLLINS Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board C. Smith, Counsel 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.