Each year, more than 3,000 people in the United States are diagnosed with malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM). The disease is most common in older people. The average age at diagnosis is 69.2 This is due to the lengthy latency period between exposure to asbestos and diagnosis with mesothelioma. Because asbestos products continue to be used to this day, it is a sad fact that many more people will be diagnosed with mesothelioma in the coming decades.