This is not a handbook for the specialist in hematology whose main interest is in the cytology of the blood. It is, as the title indicates, a textbook of diseases of the blood, intended primarily for the clinician and the medical student. As in the first edition of this book, clinical features and therapeutics are emphasized, while the discussion of blood pictures is restricted to what can be easily understood by those who have not had special training in morphologic hematology.
In some instances, this plan to limit the discussion of the cytology of the blood has led to the omission of some features which are important for differential diagnosis; for example, the spherical shape of the microcytes in hereditary hemolytic jaundice, the peculiar and characteristic neutrophil leukocyte of pernicious anemia, the character of the lymphocytes in benign lymphadenosis (infectious mononucleosis) and lymphatic reactions compared with those of acute lymphatic