Okay, I need to admit that I was never one to excel at science classes. I made it to and through high school biology and then set my sights on more nonscientific pursuits in life (basically anything that did not involve cutting into frogs or stabbing pins through insects). So, I did not know much about cell growth or genetic science before reading The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks. Scientific smarts is not needed to enjoy this book. You can read it like a novel and fly through it, or you can read it like a textbook and learn more than you ever could from a class.
In 1951, George Gey cultured the first immortal human cell line using cells from Henrietta Lacks's cervix. Henrietta died in 1951 from cervical cancer. The HeLa cells (named for the first two letters of Henrietta’s first and last names) were a boon to medical and scientific research, soon becoming in demand around the world. With the HeLa cells, a polio vaccine was developed. They were also the first human cells ever cloned.
Rebecca Skloot learned about HeLa cells when she was young and eventually set out to uncover the history of the woman they came from. Years of research entwined Rebecca’s life with the embittered Lacks’ family, who received no financial compensation for the cells. In fact, it was not until 1973 that Henrietta’s family learned the cells were still alive. They later found out the cells had been commercialized, yet they received nothing.
The author’s Web site http://rebeccaskloot.com/the-immortal-life/ says: “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks tells a riveting story of the collision between ethics, race, and medicine; of scientific discovery and faith healing; and of a daughter consumed with questions about the mother she never knew. It’s a story inextricably connected to the dark history of experimentation on African Americans, the birth of bioethics, and the legal battles over whether we control the stuff we’re made of.”
Another great book!
JJ
JJ
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