title: Chronic eosinophilic leukaemia (CEL): a distinct myeloproliferative disease.
abstract: Chronic eosinophilic leukaemia has not yet been clearly defined, mainly due to the fact that it has not been conclusively shown as a monoclonal disease which should be separated from chronic myelogenous leukaemia, acute myelogenous leukaemia with eosinophilia (AML, FAB M4Eo), and the idiopathic hypereosinophilic syndrome. We report a patient with a white blood cell count of 17.6 x 10(9)/l with 74% eosinophils, normal platelet count and haemoglobin. No blasts were seen in the peripheral blood and the percentage of blasts in the bone marrow was < 3%. A diagnosis of chronic eosinophilic leukaemia was made. Chromosome analysis of a bone marrow aspirate disclosed a trisomy 15 together with loss of the Y chromosome. Moreover, FISH analysis on May-Grünwald-Giemsa-stained peripheral blood smears demonstrated trisomy 15 in the eosinophils. 3 months after initial diagnosis the patient went into blast crisis and died. The blast cells exhibited trisomy 15 and loss of the Y chromosome in a complex, aberrant karyotype. In conclusion, the case shows that chronic eosinophilic leukaemia is a monoclonal, myeloproliferative disease with eosinophils as part of the malignant clone. Clinically, chronic eosinophilic leukaemia can be separated into a chronic phase and a blast crisis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Haematology/Oncology, Philipps-University of Marburg, Germany.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Weide
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Rieder
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Mehraein
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wolf
authors.forename: U
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Kaiser
authors.forename: U
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Seifart
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Görg
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Havemann
mesh_terms: D001752:Blast Crisis; D002884:Chromosomes, Human, Pair 15; D002908:Chronic Disease; D017809:Fatal Outcome; D006801:Humans; D017681:Hypereosinophilic Syndrome / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000235:genetics; D017404:In Situ Hybridization, Fluorescence; D007621:Karyotyping; D007958:Leukocyte Count; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010976:Platelet Count; D014314:Trisomy