Prostate cancer is a condition that qualifies many veterans for a temporary 100% VA disability rating during active treatment. However, once treatment ends, VA evaluates residual symptoms to assign a new disability rating. For veterans experiencing severe residuals, such as urinary incontinence, VA may assign a 60% rating, the highest possible for voiding dysfunction.
How VA Rates Prostate Cancer
VA rates prostate cancer at 100% while the cancer is active, under diagnostic code 7528, Malignant neoplasms of the genitourinary system. After treatment, residuals are rated from 0% to 100% according to the rating system for genitourinary conditions (38 CFR §4.115a). Ratings are based on the severity of symptoms and the type of treatment residuals experienced by the veteran.
Temporary 100% Rating
Veterans undergoing surgery or active treatment for prostate cancer are awarded a temporary total 100% disability rating. This rating continues during active cancer and treatment, and for six months after the veteran no longer has active cancer.
Residual Ratings
Once the veteran is in remission, VA assesses residuals, which may include:
- Voiding Dysfunction. Veterans requiring absorbent materials changed more than four times per day may qualify for a 60% rating. Urine leakage is rated at 20%, 40%, or 60%, depending on how often absorbent materials must be changed.
- Urinary Frequency. Veterans whose daytime voiding interval is less than one hour, or who wake to void five or more times per night, may receive a rating up to 40%. Frequency is rated at 10%, 20%, or 40%.
- Obstructed Voiding. Rated at 0%, 10%, or 30%.
- Renal Dysfunction. Rated at 0%, 30%, 60%, 80%, or 100%.
- Erectile Dysfunction. Typically rated at 0%, but veterans may qualify for Special Monthly Compensation.
Each residual has separate rating criteria. For that reason, the veteran should name every residual in the claim (urinary incontinence, urinary frequency, erectile dysfunction, and any kidney problems) so that VA evaluates each one instead of only the most obvious symptom.
Find out more about how VA evaluates prostate cancer
If you are struggling to get a 60% prostate cancer rating, our legal team may be able to help you. Contact us for a free case evaluation.
Free Case evaluationWhat Happens After the Temporary 100% Rating?
VA re-evaluates prostate cancer claims six months after the end of treatments (such as surgery, chemotherapy, or radiation) and schedules a mandatory Compensation & Pension exam. If the exam shows no recurrence and no spread of the cancer (metastasis), VA stops rating the cancer itself and rates the veteran’s residual symptoms instead.
The 100% rating does not end automatically. If the change would lower current compensation payments, VA must first issue a proposal explaining the reasons and give the veteran the opportunity to respond to the proposed rating reduction. If VA does assign a lower rating, the veteran can still appeal the decision and submit additional medical evidence.
What Qualifies for a 60% VA Rating for Prostate Cancer?
VA typically evaluates prostate cancer residuals under voiding dysfunction criteria, focusing on the severity of urinary symptoms. When renal dysfunction is the predominant residual, veterans may be rated 60% for chronic kidney disease with GFR 30-44 mL/min/1.73 m2 for at least three consecutive months during the past 12 months.
A 60% VA rating for service-connected prostate cancer usually applies to lasting urinary incontinence after treatment. Under 38 CFR § 4.115a, a veteran qualifies for a 60% rating when the urinary leakage requires either:
- Pads or other absorbent materials that must be changed more than four times per day (five or more changes)
- An appliance to manage the leakage (such as regular use of a catheter)
If the veteran’s symptoms don’t meet these thresholds, VA may assign a lower rating based on urinary frequency or other less severe residuals. A catheter used for retention alone does not automatically qualify for 60%; urinary retention that requires intermittent or continuous catheterization is evaluated as obstructed voiding and carries a 30% rating, not 60%. Urinary frequency alone is rated up to 40%.
Ratings Based on Urine Leakage
| Rating | VA rule (38 CFR § 4.115a) | In plain terms |
|---|---|---|
| 60% | Requiring the use of an appliance or the wearing of absorbent materials which must be changed more than 4 times per day | An appliance, or pads changed five or more times a day |
| 40% | Requiring the wearing of absorbent materials which must be changed 2 to 4 times per day | Pads changed two, three, or four times a day |
| 20% | Requiring the wearing of absorbent materials which must be changed less than 2 times per day | Pads changed once a day |
| 0% | Obstructive symptomatology with or without stricture disease requiring dilatation 1 to 2 times per year | Blockage symptoms, with or without a stricture that must be stretched once or twice a year |
Can Leakage, Frequency, and Retention Be Rated Separately?
VA assigns one voiding rating for prostate cancer residuals, based on whichever voiding problem is the most severe. A veteran rated 60% for urine leakage does not also receive 30% for retention or 40% for frequency. However, distinct disabilities are evaluated separately if the symptoms do not overlap.
What Evidence Supports a 60% Rating?
VA considers medical records and competent lay evidence showing how often leakage requires absorbent materials to be changed, or whether an appliance is required to manage leakage. The records that support each rating path are:
- Urology or primary care notes that record the number of pad changes per day, or an appliance used for leakage (leakage, 20% to 60%)
- Notes recording the daytime voiding interval and the number of times the veteran wakes at night to urinate (frequency, 10% to 40%)
- Kidney records showing GFR findings over at least three consecutive months during the past year, regular routine dialysis or eligibility for a kidney transplant (renal dysfunction, 0% to 100%)
A daily pad and voiding log adds what an office visit cannot show. The log should record the time of each pad change, the time between daytime trips to the bathroom, and each time the veteran wakes at night to urinate. Additionally, a spouse can describe the nightly trips to the bathroom and the supply of pads used each day, and buddy statements from family members or coworkers can describe how the leakage affects work and daily routines.
What Does the C&P Examiner Need to Record?
VA’s rating decision will consider the examiner’s report, including any Disability Benefits Questionnaire (DBQ), which is VA’s standardized exam form.
The C&P exam report needs the same facts present in the rating criteria: daily changes of absorbent materials or use of an appliance, the daytime voiding interval, nightly voids, any retention that requires catheterization, and recent kidney function results.
The veteran should give the examiner numbers from the log, such as five pad changes a day or waking four times a night, rather than general descriptions.
Can Prostate Cancer Residuals Be Rated Higher Than 60%?
Prostate cancer residuals can be rated higher than 60%, or earn compensation beyond a 60% rating, even though no voiding dysfunction scale goes above 60%. The paths to higher compensation are a renal dysfunction rating, total disability based on individual unemployability (TDIU), and Special Monthly Compensation for radical prostatectomy or erectile dysfunction.
Prostate Cancer Residual Rating Based on Kidney Function
When kidney problems are the predominant residual under the DC 7528 note, the renal scale replaces the voiding scale, and the renal scale goes up to 100%. Kidney dysfunction is measured by glomerular filtration rate (GFR), a lab value showing how well the kidneys filter blood.
| Rating | Rating Criteria |
|---|---|
| 100% | Chronic kidney disease with glomerular filtration rate (GFR) less than 15 mL/min/1.73 m² for at least 3 consecutive months during the past 12 months; or requiring regular routine dialysis; or eligible kidney transplant recipient |
| 80% | Chronic kidney disease with GFR from 15 to 29 mL/min/1.73 m² for at least 3 consecutive months during the past 12 months |
| 60% | Chronic kidney disease with GFR from 30 to 44 mL/min/1.73 m² for at least 3 consecutive months during the past 12 months |
Special Monthly Compensation
Special monthly compensation under 38 U.S.C. 1114(k), known as SMC-K, is paid for loss or loss of use of one or more creative organs, on top of the standard disability rate. Radical prostatectomy or erectile dysfunction secondary to prostate cancer can pay a small additional amount even though the erectile dysfunction itself is rated 0%.
A 60% Rating for Prostate Cancer Could Qualify for TDIU
One disability rated at 60% meets the single-disability threshold for Total Disability based on Individual Unemployability, which allows compensation at the 100% level when service-connected disabilities leave the veteran unable to keep a substantially gainful occupation.
Get Help Securing the Prostate Cancer Rating You Deserve
Veterans exposed to toxins such as Agent Orange or burn pits may already qualify for VA disability under presumptive service connection rules, which means they don’t have to prove the link to military service. Direct or secondary service connection are possible for veterans who don’t benefit from a VA presumption. But service connection is only half of the battle.
Hill & Ponton is dedicated to winning maximum VA ratings and benefits for veterans who were previously denied or underrated (or their surviving family). Request a free case evaluation to see if our VA-accredited lawyers can help you win your VA claim.
Get a Free evaluationContent Reviewed By
Allison Reddick
Attorney, Hill & Ponton, P.A.
Allison Reddick is a passionate advocate for veterans, combining her extensive health and legal expertise to ensure they receive the benefits and healthcare they deserve. A "triple Gator" graduate of the University of Florida, Allison's dedication to social justice and public health drives her work at Hill & Ponton, where she specializes in veterans' disability law.
Written By
Allison Reddick
Attorney, Hill & Ponton, P.A.
Allison Reddick is a passionate advocate for veterans, combining her extensive health and legal expertise to ensure they receive the benefits and healthcare they deserve. A "triple Gator" graduate of the University of Florida, Allison's dedication to social justice and public health drives her work at Hill & Ponton, where she specializes in veterans' disability law.
