The Hypereosinophilic Syndrome and the Biology of Cancer

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Abstract
Patients with sustained high-grade eosinophilia without an evident cause usually receive the diagnosis of hypereosinophilic syndrome, a high-sounding term that only masks our ignorance. Apart from the consistent presence of hypereosinophilia, the clinical picture of the hypereosinophilic syndrome varies. In some cases, the toxic contents of tissue-invasive eosinophils (see electron micrograph) cause heart failure, pulmonary lesions, and harm to other organs. In other cases, urticaria and itchy nodules in the skin dominate the clinical picture. The hypereosinophilic syndrome is a rare disorder, yet as Cools et al. tell us in this issue of the Journal (pages 1201–1214), it carries a message . . .