Sujana S. Chandrasekhar, MD, Consulting Editor

Otolaryngologists, whether or not they incorporate anterior skull base surgery into their practices, should be aware of techniques for early and accurate evaluation, anatomical considerations, particularly with relation to the structures of the orbit and the nerves and vessels near the cavernous sinus, and the various surgical approaches for tumor resection. It is not enough to resect; these tumors affect the appearance of the patient’s face, the first thing that is presented to the world around them. Reconstruction techniques to manage the defect to minimize cosmetic deformity must be understood as this is often a primary concern of the patient and their family. Extirpative and reconstructive surgery, targeted chemotherapy and radiotherapy, and incorporating a multidisciplinary team for analysis, treatment, and outcome assessment keep the patient in the center of the care paradigm. When the treating team understands and conveys the individual and population-based outcomes, the patient and their family can fully participate in a shared decision-making process.

Drs Jean Anderson Eloy, Michael Setzen, and James K. Liu have compiled a comprehensive review of anterior skull base malignancies in this issue of Otolaryngologic Clinics of North America . The reader will be left with a thorough understanding of the state-of-the-art and -science in diagnosing, determining etiology, and offering targeted medical, surgical, and adjuvant therapies to the patient who presents with a sinonasal or ventral skull base cancer. I congratulate the authors of each article on their far-ranging exploration of each subject, and the guest editors on presenting a thorough exposition of this complex topic and making it accessible to the reader.