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The Immortal Life Of Henrietta Lacks By Rebecca Skloot

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The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks is a novel by Rebecca Skloot detailing the life of Henrietta Lacks and her family. In her 2010 narrative, Skloot explores the scientific discoveries made through the use of the so-called HeLa cells obtained from Henrietta in her final years, as well as the results of malpractice within segregated hospitals and the effects on the Lacks family. The importance of these topics was only amplified with each new advancement and each new onus transferred to the Lacks family. Consequently, strong held beliefs by both the scientific community and Henrietta’s ancestors clashed. The story of Henrietta Lacks began on a plantation in Virginia in 1920, but the most impactful years of her life came at the end of her time. They were trademarked by immense pain and frequent trips to the infamous John Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore. At the time of Henrietta’s death in 1951, cancer research was nascent when …show more content…

Jonas Salk was able to develop a polio vaccine through his work with the cells. HeLa cells also led to the discovery of an influenza vaccine. The research on these immortal cells did see quite a bit of turbulence in the scientific community, though. When Stanley Gartler announced that HeLa cells had contaminated many other cell lines thought to be unique in 1966, many scientists became outraged and questioned the preposterous accusations. Even more controversial was the exposure of malpractice within the realm of cell research. Racial division had fueled medical policies for years. African Americans were practically treated like test monkeys, receiving potentially fatal injections and having samples taken from their bodies without their consent. These practices resulted in the Lacks family not receiving their deserved compensation, ultimately revolutionizing the medical industry’s outlook on how minority patients should be cared

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