Her name was Henrietta Lacks, but scientists know her as HeLa. She was a poor black tobacco farmer whose cells—taken without her knowledge in 1951—became one of the most important tools in medicine, vital for developing the polio vaccine, cloning, gene mapping, in vitro fertilization, and more. Henrietta’s cells have been bought and sold by the billions, yet she remains virtually unknown, and her family can’t afford health insurance.
This New York Times bestseller takes readers on an extraordinary journey, from the “colored” ward of Johns Hopkins Hospital in the 1950s to stark white laboratories with freezers filled with HeLa cells, from Henrietta’s small, dying hometown of Clover, Virginia, to East Baltimore today, where her children and grandchildren live and struggle with the legacy of her cells. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks tells a riveting story of the collision between ethics, race, and medicine; of scientific discovery and faith …
Her name was Henrietta Lacks, but scientists know her as HeLa. She was a poor black tobacco farmer whose cells—taken without her knowledge in 1951—became one of the most important tools in medicine, vital for developing the polio vaccine, cloning, gene mapping, in vitro fertilization, and more. Henrietta’s cells have been bought and sold by the billions, yet she remains virtually unknown, and her family can’t afford health insurance.
This New York Times bestseller takes readers on an extraordinary journey, from the “colored” ward of Johns Hopkins Hospital in the 1950s to stark white laboratories with freezers filled with HeLa cells, from Henrietta’s small, dying hometown of Clover, Virginia, to East Baltimore today, where her children and grandchildren live and struggle with the legacy of her cells. 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. ([source][1])
this book is apparently inaccurate
I picked up this book hoping it would tell me more about the HeLa cells and the background to them. It sort of does that, except it's really more a book about how the author gathered the information in the book - "I went here, met X, went somewhere else, met Y". As a result, it ends up feeling like the author has inserted herself into the story, and perhaps also got a bit too close to the participants.
For me, this is one of those books which isn't that fulfilling on its own, but a good jumping off point by following up the references etc.
This is a really great book to listen to. It was narrated well.
The content was great - a very neat combination of personal stories and the very important history of medical science in the US and the racism of it. I highly recommend this book!
Will post my thoughts on Hive soon
hint hint nudge nudge
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=22lGbAVWhro
This book is fantastic in so many ways. I've had it on my list for a while, but I felt like I finally needed to sit down and read it.
First, it actually provides a lot of information about one of the most infamous people in science that many had never even heard of: Henrietta Lacks. It's disappointing that one (black) woman's cells were used to do so much for scientific advancement, and her family was never made aware. It's not at all shocking, especially considering the Jim Crow laws of the early 1900s (and the remaining segregation through varying policies that have intentionally targeted Black Americans). The details around Henrietta's family are amazing, reminding us all of something that went largely unacknowledged for decades (and, honestly, still lacking in a lot of human-based scientific research): She was human, and she had people who cared for her.
And they all …
This book is fantastic in so many ways. I've had it on my list for a while, but I felt like I finally needed to sit down and read it.
First, it actually provides a lot of information about one of the most infamous people in science that many had never even heard of: Henrietta Lacks. It's disappointing that one (black) woman's cells were used to do so much for scientific advancement, and her family was never made aware. It's not at all shocking, especially considering the Jim Crow laws of the early 1900s (and the remaining segregation through varying policies that have intentionally targeted Black Americans). The details around Henrietta's family are amazing, reminding us all of something that went largely unacknowledged for decades (and, honestly, still lacking in a lot of human-based scientific research): She was human, and she had people who cared for her.
And they all deserved to know everything as it happened. Henrietta deserved to know that she had made a 'donation'. Her family deserved to know why their blood was being drawn and what it might be used for. Above all, for HeLa being so widely used in medical research and having so many impacts on our lives today, Henrietta deserved to be known for her role in it all. Without her, who knows if someone else's cells would've transformed science in the ways hers had and where we'd be now.
Second, it discusses a lot of the ethics controversies that exist in research, particularly within medical science. This is done this with a lot of fairness, too. Skloot doesn't really sugarcoat or explain away important pieces of information, just to make it sound better because one Good Thing came out of A Lot of Not Good (and Sometimes Bad) Things. She acknowledges the history of varying elements, their impact on people and societies, and the ways in which they can be seen today.
There are a lot of issues with tissue 'donation', which is largely that it's not always truly donated. Even years later, we are still struggling with the concept and how to work on it; this is despite the fact that, while there were always fears of patients holding up science, it seems that pharmaceutical companies and other patent-holders have been the exact problem they believed patients would've been. Many researchers seem to neglect the human element, which is infuriating. In so many areas of Henrietta's (and her family's) stories, this was so apparent.
Note: I'm saying the above as someone who intentionally worked on social policy in another area of science (environmental), trying to convey information laced in jargon to 'the common person' because so many (generally white and male) scientists honestly can't be bothered to actually do the community work (and then openly wonder why people don't trust them). The 'holier than thou' attitude didn't help, either. Along with openly ignoring the history of their own fields, which often hint at why 'common people' are cautious.
A challenging but thorough dive into issues of tissue rights, the intersection of race and gender of Henrietta and her family, and conflicted interest between human rights, health research, and "research" leading to corporate ownership of valuable biologicals originating from patients. This deserves more eyes from patients as this is still tricky legal territory, and laws have yet to be written covering many issues now arising in court.
"Black scientists and technicians, many of them women, used cells from a black woman to help save the lives of millions of Americans, most of them white. And they did so on the same campus--and at the very same time--that state officials were conducting the infamous Tuskegee syphilis studies."
Wow, what an incredible and tragic story. I can't believe (...but also can...) that in all of the science classes I've taken, not one has mentioned Henrietta. I loved getting the scientific story about her cells, but I appreciated the author making the book mostly about her family and how they dealt/were dealing with the discovery and aftermath of all this new knowledge.
All in all, probably one of my favorite books of the year.
A very compelling read, emotional, full of information and dealing very gently with all the issues surrounding Henrietta Lacks' death, her family and the HeLa cells. Quite sad and scary at times, too. I highly recommend it to anyone with interests in medical history, biology or patient's rights.
I really do not like Rebecca Skloot..
I understand that Henrietta Lacks's story needed to be told and I am thankful that the author did that. Nevertheless, I can't help thinking that her approach was rather questionable. The Lacks family was, in my opinion, portrayed in an awful way. Skloot made all of them seem like (superstitious) idiots with anger issues.
And I really hope that the Family got some of the profit Skloot made out of this book.
I enjoyed this book. I listened to it as an audiobook and I think the audiobook narrator conveyed tone and emotion well. Keep in mind that this book was largely about Henrietta Lacks' family and the reporter's story while researching Henrietta Lacks.
Exceptional. Skloot skillfully presents the science, the ethical issues, and most especially the complex human perspectives. It's really hard to convey how delightful and worthwhile this book is.
This isn't just a very moving story about Henrietta Lacks and her family, but an interesting examination of race, class, and the path to adoption of modern laws regarding informed consent for research subjects and privacy of medical records. It's also an interesting scientific history of the HeLa cells themselves, why they are so unusual, and how they have been integral to the development of modern cancer treatments. The author treats sensitive subjects in a moving way that really draw you into the story, and I found myself rooting for the Lacks family to find justice and, more importantly, emotional closure.
I really enjoyed this book. It had the right mix of biographical stories, science facts, and moral questions to consider. Although non-fiction, it reads like a novel and was very engaging. Henrietta Lacks died of cervical cancer in the 1950s. At the time of her death, the doctors at Johns Hopkins took samples of her cells and were able to successfully grow and study them in the laboratory. Her cells have been vital in medical research throughout the years, and are still growing in labs today.
I found myself thinking about the Lacks family and medical research throughout the day as I was reading the book. I felt Rebecca Skloot did weave herself and her quest to research the Lacks family a bit much into the narrative, but her perspective added insights into the family and how they felt about Johns Hopkins, reporters, and the what happened to Henrietta's cells. …
I really enjoyed this book. It had the right mix of biographical stories, science facts, and moral questions to consider. Although non-fiction, it reads like a novel and was very engaging. Henrietta Lacks died of cervical cancer in the 1950s. At the time of her death, the doctors at Johns Hopkins took samples of her cells and were able to successfully grow and study them in the laboratory. Her cells have been vital in medical research throughout the years, and are still growing in labs today.
I found myself thinking about the Lacks family and medical research throughout the day as I was reading the book. I felt Rebecca Skloot did weave herself and her quest to research the Lacks family a bit much into the narrative, but her perspective added insights into the family and how they felt about Johns Hopkins, reporters, and the what happened to Henrietta's cells.
This would be a great book for a book club discussion, with the potential for rich dialogue regarding the potential moral repercussions and long-term advantages to medical research in general and specifically around cell research. Highly recommended.
Lots of reviews on this but I don't elaborate on my reviews I make them short and sweet. So don't read this book if you aren't interested in the biological story and ethical issues behind HeLa cells. Henrietta is only prominent in the first part of the book (can't say chapters because I was listening to audio book). The remainder of the book is the struggle of her daughter (who never knew her mother because she was too young) to come to terms with the scientific uses of her mother's cells. In addition there is a lot on the ethical issues of using people's cells/tissues without there knowledge. My undergraduate degree is in biology so I learned a lot in the book and found it quite interesting. If science isn't your thing you may find it tedious.
