The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot Essay -- Medica

After her death in 1951, for six decades, Henrietta Lacks did non survive in the eyes of the society, but her cells did. How? Well, the answer is quite simple. HeLa Cells are the branch immortal human cells. These cells never die and multiply every two dozen hours. After spending 10 years to perfect her first book, cause of The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, Rebecca Skloot essentially captured the life, the death, and aftermath of Henrietta Lacks life. With controversial is treats regarding science, ethics, race, and class Skloot takes us on an extraordinary journey. From the colored ward of Johns Hopkins Hospital in the fifties to stark white laboratories with freezers full of HeLa cells, from Henriettas small, dying hometown of Clover, Virginia to East Baltimore, where her children and grandchildren peppy and struggle with the legacy of her cells, Skloot remarkably shows the story of the Lacks family is inextricably connected to the lightless history of experimentation o n African Americans along with the issue of bioethics, and effectual battles over whether we control the stuff we are made of. The most ambitious aspect of this story is how is it that HeLa cells were used to develop the polio vaccine, uncover secrets of cancer, viruses, and the do of the atomic bomb, and help lead to important advancements for vitro fertilization, cloning, and genes mapping, yet, her five children are not even covered by medical insurance. Cant the family sue for a profit? This question has been asked multiple times and in diverse forms, but the answer remains controversial. As Skloot addresses in her book, many lawyers augur out that the family cannot sue over the cells being takenbut they could attempt to fail HeLa research through a law... ... May 2010.Moreno, Jonathan D. Lessons Learned A Half-Century of Experimenting on Humans. The Humanist Sept. 1999 9. Questia. Web. 31 May 2010.Nazi Neighbour Nathan Gasch Moved to the US to Escape His Holocaust Memori es but Six Decades on He find the Man Next Door Was an SS Guard. at the Camp Where He Had Been a Prisoner. The Mirror (London, England) 6 Oct. 2007 31. Questia. Web. 31 May 2010.S. Fla. Hospital Called Most Dangerous - Health intelligence operation Story - WPLG Miami. Just risings Miami News, Fort Lauderdale News, Florida News, Weather WPLG local 10. Local 10 News, 14 Sept. 2009. Web. 27 May 2010. .Skloot, Rebecca. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks. New York Crown, 2010. Print.Williams, Patricia J. State of Denial. The Nation 13 Oct. 2003 10. Questia. Web. 31 May 2010.