The purpose of this study was to evaluate the value of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) as a marker for differentiation between different types of pleural effusion. This study was conducted on 40 patient with pleural effusion; 20 patients with malignant pleural effusion and 20 patients with non - malignant pleural effusion. The level of VEGF in both serum and pleural fluid was found to be significantly higher in malignant effusion group of patients than the non - malignant effusion group of patients.