This well-established book is an ideal introduction to the mechanisms of disease. This new edition reflects the hugely increased understanding of molecular mechanisms. The central thesis is that most disease processes are caused by the inadequate adaptation to either the internal or external environment. The book will give students in the first years of their course an excellent background for the subsequent study of system-based pathology. This edition has received a major revision by Dr Spector (son of the original author) and Professor Axford (editor of the Blackwells Textbook of Medicine).