AUTHOR=Chu Gerard J., van Zandwijk Nico, Rasko John E. J. TITLE=The Immune Microenvironment in Mesothelioma: Mechanisms of Resistance to Immunotherapy JOURNAL=Frontiers in Oncology VOLUME=9 YEAR=2019 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fonc.2019.01366 DOI=10.3389/fonc.2019.01366 ISSN=2234-943X ABSTRACT=Although mesothelioma is the consequence of a protracted immune response to asbestos fibers and characterized by a clear immune infiltrate, novel immunotherapy approaches show less convincing results as compared to those seen in melanoma and non-small cell lung cancer. The immune suppressive microenvironment in mesothelioma is likely contributing to this therapy resistance. Therefore, it is important to explore the characteristics of the tumor microenvironment for explanations for this recalcitrant behavior. This review describes the stromal, cytokine, metabolic, and cellular milieu of mesothelioma, and attempts to make connection with the outcome of immunotherapy trials.