Citation Nr: 22028465 Decision Date: 05/13/22 Archive Date: 05/13/22 DOCKET NO. 17-66 345 DATE: May 13, 2022 ORDER The petition to reopen the claim of entitlement to service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death is granted. The appeal is allowed to that extent only. REMANDED The claim of entitlement to service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death is remanded. FINDINGS OF FACT 1. An unappealed January 2015 rating decision denied, in relevant part, a claim of entitlement to service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death. 2. Evidence received since the final January 2015 rating decision relates to unestablished facts necessary to substantiate the claim of entitlement to service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death and raises a reasonable possibility of substantiating the claim that military service caused his death. Since then, a private medical opinion received in July 2018 has been included in the claims file along with lay assertions from the Veteran's surviving spouse and former spouse, indicating that the pancreatic cancer-causing death related to exposure to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. CONCLUSIONS OF LAW 1. The January 2015 rating decision that denied the claim of entitlement to service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death is final. 38 U.S.C. § 7105; 38 C.F.R. § 20.302. 2. New and material evidence has been received to reopen the claim of entitlement to service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death. 38 U.S.C. § 5108; 38 C.F.R. § 3.156. REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS The Veteran served on active duty from December 1963 to January 1968. He died in June 2013. The appellant is his surviving spouse. This matter comes before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal of a February 2017 decision by a U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs' (VA) Veterans Benefits Administration, which denied the petition to reopen the claim of entitlement to service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death. Petition to reopen service connection As noted above, new and material evidence has been included in the claims file since the final rating decision. As such, the petition to reopen the claim of entitlement to service connection is granted. 38 U.S.C. §§ 5108, 7105; 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.156, 20.302. REASONS FOR REMAND A remand is warranted for medical inquiry into the reopened claim. The Veteran died of metastatic pancreatic cancer. He served at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. The appellant asserts that exposure to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune caused his death. 38 C.F.R. § 3.309(f). The record contains two medical opinions addressing the claim a VA opinion dated in November 2014 and a private opinion dated in July 2018. The record also indicates that the Veteran served in the Republic of Vietnam between 1964 and 1966. 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.307, 3.309(e). On remand, an addendum medical opinion should be provided. The matter is REMANDED for the following action: Schedule an examination of the record to assess the nature and etiology of the Veteran's pancreatic cancer. After reviewing the electronic claims file, the examiner should answer the following questions: (a) Is the metastatic pancreatic cancer that resulted in death listed under 38 C.F.R. § 3.309(e)? (b) If not, is it approximately at least as likely as not (i.e., probability of approximately 50 percent or more) that pancreatic cancer had its onset during service or was related to a disease, event, or injury during service? In answering this question, address whether herbicide exposure in Vietnam could have caused the Veteran's pancreatic cancer. Address whether pancreatic cancer resulted from contaminated water at Camp Lejeune. Also address the VA opinion dated in November 2014 and the private opinion dated in July 2018. Note that pancreatic cancer is not listed under 38 C.F.R. § 3.309(f) as a disorder that may be presumed related to contaminated water exposure at Camp Lejeune. Also note that pancreatic cancer is not expressly listed under 38 C.F.R. § 3.309(e) as a disorder that may be presumed related to herbicide exposure. Nevertheless, pancreatic cancer may be service connected if evidence indicates that it approximately at least as likely as not relates to service, to include exposure to contaminated water and herbicides during service. Please explain in detail any opinion provided and the supporting rationale. K. A. KENNERLY Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board Christopher McEntee 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.