Joycelyn L. Speight, MD, PhD

Malignant pleural mesothelioma(MPM) is an invasivelocally aggressive tumorthat is nearly always fatal. Historically,treatments resulting in durable controlhave seemed unobtainable andfostered a somewhat fatalistic managementapproach. Until recently, nonovel therapies had emerged that offeredreal hope for improvement inthe poor median overall and progression-free survival. In this issue ofONCOLOGY, Dr Antman and colleaguesprovide an overview of theepidemiology, natural history, andmanagement strategies for malignantmesothelioma, with an emphasis onMPM.[1]