The Endocrine and Metabolic Systems

Abstract

As a medical student, long ago, my course textbook was “Boyd’s Pathology,” a heavy tome which I dutifully read—cover to cover—and underlined to be sure I had noted the important parts. My task was made easier because, as evidenced in the quotation presented, Boyd wrote with a flair rarely found in current medical writing. Extended metaphors and classical allusions, such as the one above to the sirens of ancient Greek mythology, are seldom encountered today. In 1955, Boyd metaphorically likened the endocrines to uncharted seas. Today these oceans are somewhat better “charted.” Yet, in both the endocrine and metabolic systems, there are dozens of rare diseases we everyday practicing clinicians may encounter once in a professional lifetime, but, when we do, we want to recognize the pathologic entity before us.