B173607

International standard book number

978-0-230-74869-9

System control number

9297

Language code

eng

Shelfmark

2.2 LAC

Author

Skloot, Rebecca

Title

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

Publication, distribution, etc.

London: Macmillan5, 2010

Physical description

xii, (2), 368, 24 cm x 16 cm x 3.8 cm

Biographical or historical data

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks captures the beauty and drama of scientific discovery as well as human consequences. Henrietta Lacks was a poor Southern African-American tobacco farmer whose cancerous cervical tumour was the source of what has come to be known as the HeLa cells, the first 'immortal' human cell line. These cells remain 'alive' 75 years after her death, revolutionising medical research. However, the cells were isolated without her consent and knowledge. Her family, after her death, was kept in the dark about the existence of the tissue line. The existence of the cell line was revealed in a 1976 Rolling Stone article by Michael Rogers. Family members were understandably confused about how Henrietta’s cells could have been taken without consent, and that they could still be alive 25 years after her death. Scientists worldwide have used Henrietta’s cells for research into cancer, AIDS, and other conditions. There are almost 11,000 patents who have been treated with HeLa cells. As well as issues over consent, there is a financial issue that Henrietta’s family did not see any profits from the multimillion-dollar industry that sells human biological materials.

Rebecca Skloot documents the histories of both the cell line and the Lacks family. She relied on legal documents, interviews and medical records to re-create scenes from Henrietta’s life. On the book’s release in 2010, it caught the public's attention, staying on the New York Times bestseller list for 2 years. Rebecca Skloot is the founder and president of The Henrietta Lacks Foundation. A portion of the book’s proceeds and donations from the reading public and scientists provide the basis of the foundation.

Subject

Biography (Categories)

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545##$aThe Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks captures the beauty and drama of scientific discovery as well as human consequences. Henrietta Lacks was a poor Southern African-American tobacco farmer whose cancerous cervical tumour was the source of what has come to be known as the HeLa cells, the first 'immortal' human cell line. These cells remain 'alive' 75 years after her death, revolutionising medical research. However, the cells were isolated without her consent and knowledge. Her family, after her death, was kept in the dark about the existence of the tissue line. The existence of the cell line was revealed in a 1976 Rolling Stone article by Michael Rogers. Family members were understandably confused about how Henrietta’s cells could have been taken without consent, and that they could still be alive 25 years after her death. Scientists worldwide have used Henrietta’s cells for research into cancer, AIDS, and other conditions. There are almost 11,000 patents who have been treated with HeLa cells. As well as issues over consent, there is a financial issue that Henrietta’s family did not see any profits from the multimillion-dollar industry that sells human biological materials. Rebecca Skloot documents the histories of both the cell line and the Lacks family. She relied on legal documents, interviews and medical records to re-create scenes from Henrietta’s life. On the book’s release in 2010, it caught the public's attention, staying on the New York Times bestseller list for 2 years. Rebecca Skloot is the founder and president of The Henrietta Lacks Foundation. A portion of the book’s proceeds and donations from the reading public and scientists provide the basis of the foundation.

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