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The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks (Paperback)
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|Short Description for The Immortal Life of Henrietta LacksIn 1951, Henrietta Lacks from Baltimore died of cancer. Her death changed medical science for ever. Her cancer cells - taken without her knowledge - became one of the most important tools in medicine. This book takes us on a journey in search of Henrietta's story, from the 'coloured' ward of Johns Hopkins Hospital in the 1950s onwards.
Full description- Publisher: MACMILLAN
- Published: 16 April 2010
- Format: Paperback 384 pages
- See: Full bibliographic data
- Categories: Biography: Science, Technology & Engineering | Ethnic Studies | Medical Research | History Of Medicine | Science: General Issues | Popular Science
- ISBN 13: 9780230750210 ISBN 10: 0230750214
- Sales rank: 13,076
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Full description for The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
In 1951, a young woman from Baltimore died of cancer. Her death changed medical science for ever. Her name was Henrietta Lacks, but scientists know her as HeLa. She was a poor Southern tobacco farmer whose cancer cells - taken without her knowledge - became one of the most important tools in medicine. The first 'immortal' human tissue grown in culture, HeLa cells were vital for developing the polio vaccine; uncovered secrets of cancer, viruses, and the effects of the atom bomb; helped lead to important advances like in vitro fertilization, cloning, and gene mapping; and have been bought and sold by the billions. Yet Henrietta herself remains virtually unknown, buried in an unmarked grave. Now Rebecca Skloot takes us on an extraordinary journey in search of Henrietta's story, from the 'coloured' ward of Johns Hopkins Hospital in the 1950s to East Baltimore today, where her children and grandchildren live, and struggle with the legacy of her cells. Full of warmth and questing intelligence, astonishing in scope and impossible to put down, "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" captures the beauty and drama of scientific discovery, as well as its human consequences.
