Citation Nr: 21030065 Decision Date: 05/17/21 Archive Date: 05/17/21 DOCKET NO. 14-16 257 ATE: May 17, 2021 REMANDED Entitlement to service connection for small intestines tumor, to include as secondary to exposure to herbicides, is remanded. Entitlement to service connection for right hemi-colectomy of cecal mass, claimed as colon tumor, to include as secondary to exposure to herbicides, is remanded. Entitlement to service connection for prostate cancer, to include as secondary to exposure to herbicides, is remanded. Entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) prior to January 30, 2014 is remanded. Entitlement to a temporary total evaluation for convalescence under paragraph 30 due to colon surgery is remanded. Entitlement to a temporary total evaluation for convalescence under paragraph 30 due to radical prostatectomy is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran had active service from September 1978 to January 1985. This case comes before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal from a December 2010 rating decision of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO) in Montgomery, Alabama. The Veteran appeared via videoconferencing equipment and provided testimony before the undersigned Veterans Law Judge in May 2017. A transcript of the hearing has been associated with the claims file. The Board remanded these matters in January 2018 and January 2020 for additional development, which, as discussed in the remand section below, has not been substantially completed. See Stegall v. West, 11 Vet. App. 268 (1998). 1. Entitlement to service connection for small intestines tumor, to include as secondary to exposure to herbicides, is remanded. 2. Entitlement to service connection for right hemi-colectomy of cecal mass, claimed as colon tumor, to include as secondary to exposure to herbicides, is remanded. 3. Entitlement to service connection for prostate cancer, to include as secondary to exposure to herbicides, is remanded. The Veteran seeks service connection for small intestines tumor, right hemi-colectomy of cecal mass, and prostate cancer disabilities, to include as secondary to exposure to herbicides and as due to medications prescribed during service. During the Veteran's hearing before the Board, he indicated that drums of herbicides had been buried on the military base and that while he was stationed there, the drums were being dug up and moved. He believes he was exposed to herbicides, to include via water contamination. In the January 2020 remand, the Board ordered the RO to attempt to determine whether the Veteran was exposed to herbicides while stationed in Korea as a heavy vehicle driver with the USA Material Support Center (USA MSC-K). In March 2020, the Veteran clarified that he served in USA MSC-K HHC Hq Company and service personnel records support his assertion. In March 2020, the RO asked the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) for information about the Veteran's unit. However, the RO again provided incorrect unit information. As such, the January 2020 remand directives have not been substantially completed and a remand is required to request documents from NARA or other appropriate repositories addressing the Veteran's herbicide exposure while serving in Korea with USA MSC-K HHC Hq Company. In the January 2020 remand, the Board also asked the RO to attempt to obtain any reports pertaining to herbicides at Camp Carroll, to include the December 2011 Executive Summary of the Army's Comprehensive Report for Agent Orange at Camp Carroll in Korea. The RO sent requests to NARA for the documents. NARA indicated that it did not have records from 1985 to present and that requests for documents should be sent to the Army Records Management Division (ARMD). In March 2020, the RO asked the ARMD for reports pertaining to Camp Carroll; however, ARMD indicated that it is a policy office and does not physically maintain or control these types of records. ARMD indicated that the Veteran may submit a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for the documents in writing to the Veteran Gray Research Center. Review of the claims file shows that the RO did not make a request to this facility for documents or inform the Veteran of the response from ARMD. As such, the Board finds that the January 2020 remand directives have not been substantially completed. On remand, the RO should request records from the Veteran Gray Research Center and inform the Veteran that he may submit a FOIA request to obtain documents on his own behalf. Finally, should the evidence reveal that the Veteran was exposed to chemicals other than herbicide agents as defined under 38C.F.R. §3.307(a)(6)while he was stationed in Korea, opinions should be obtained addressing whether any of the Veteran's current disabilities are related to that exposure. 4. Entitlement to a TDIU prior to January 30, 2014 is remanded. 5. Entitlement to a temporary total evaluation for convalescence under paragraph 30 due to colon surgery is remanded. 6. Entitlement to a temporary total evaluation for convalescence under paragraph 30 due to radical prostatectomy is remanded. Regarding the claims for temporary total evaluations and an earlier effective date for a TDIU, the Board notes that these claims are inextricably intertwined with the service connection claims remanded herein as the outcome of these claims depend on the outcome of the service connection claims remanded herein. Therefore, the claims for a temporary total evaluation for convalescence under paragraph 30 due to colon surgery and radical prostatectomy and claim for an earlier effective date for a TDIU are remanded pending the development ordered herein. The matters are REMANDED for the following actions: 1. Obtain and associate with the electronic claims file VA treatment records dated since February 2020, if any. 2. Attempt to obtain any Army reports pertaining to Camp Carroll, to include the Executive Summary of the Army's Comprehensive Report for Agent Orange at Camp Carroll completed in or around December 2011. A request for documents from the Veteran Gray Research Center should be made and the Veteran should be informed that he may submit a FOIA request on his behalf asking for copies of these reports. 3. Take appropriate steps to determine whether the Veteran may have been exposed to herbicides or other chemicals during his active service in Korea. Requests to NARA or other appropriate repositories must be made and should specifically address the Veteran's unit: USA MSC-K HHC Hq Company. Documented evidence as to what steps were taken must be set forth in the claims file. 4. If it is confirmed that the Veteran was exposed to chemicals other than herbicide agents as defined under 38 C.F.R. § 3.307(a)(6), ask a qualified clinician to review the claims file and address the relationship between the Veteran's claimed disabilities and service, to include chemical exposure. The examiner must review the claims file and indicate review of the file in the opinion report. An examination should be scheduled if the examiner finds it necessary. Specifically, the examiner should be asked to provide opinions indicating whether it is at least as likely as not (50 percent or greater probability) that the Veteran's small intestines tumor, right hemi-colectomy of cecal mass, and/or prostate cancer disabilities are due to exposure to chemicals while stationed in Korea. The examiner must address each disability. The examiner must address the Veteran's lay assertions and provide a full rationale in support of each opinion. 5. Undertake any development necessary as a result of the actions above. 6. Then, readjudicate the Veteran's claims on appeal. If the benefits sought on appeal remain denied, the Veteran and his representative should be provided a supplemental statement of the case. Allow an appropriate period of time for response. L. CHU Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board A. G. Alderman, 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.