Military Toxic Exposures and What the Board Links to Them
For exposures that are not automatically presumptive, asbestos, benzene, solvents, fuels, metals and more, a veteran has to prove the medical link case by case, and published Board decisions are the roadmap. For each agent below: the conditions the Board has actually ruled on, granted vs denied, next to the known health-effects science. Presumptive exposures (Agent Orange, burn pits, radiation, Camp Lejeune) are covered on the Toxic Exposure hub.
Grant and denial counts are how the Board ruled across published decisions; they reflect the mix of cases where an agent comes up, not a prediction for any individual claim.
Common questions
What does "non-presumptive" mean?
For some exposures (Agent Orange, burn pits, Camp Lejeune, certain radiation) the law presumes named conditions are service-connected, no medical proof of the link needed. Everything on this page is the opposite: no presumption exists, so the veteran must prove the medical connection. Board precedent is the roadmap for how others did it.
Why aren't Agent Orange or burn pits listed here?
Those are presumptive and covered on the Toxic Exposure hub and the PACT Act page. This catalogue is only the non-presumptive agents where Board rulings, not a statute, are the guide.
Can I still win a non-presumptive exposure claim?
Yes. It takes proof of the exposure plus a medical opinion linking it to the condition. The pages here show which conditions the Board has actually connected to each agent, and at what rate, so you can see where the record is strongest.
Related Tools and Guides
RateMyVSO. Educational aggregate of published Board of Veterans' Appeals decisions plus public-domain toxicology (ATSDR). Not affiliated with the VA. Not legal or medical advice. Whether any exposure caused any condition in a specific case is a medical and legal question, a VSO representative can help.