Rated  of 5
by CarolK
Outstanding blend of Science & History
This has been on my TBR list for most of 2010.I knew I wanted to read it as soon as I heard it involved The HeLa Cells. Somewhere in the back of my mind I knew I had heard about these famous cells taken from an African American woman diagnosed with cervical cancer in the 50’s. The cells were taken without her knowledge and without the knowledge of her family. The cells lived, she did not. Meet Henrietta Lacks.
Like the author, Rebecca Skloot, I was curious to know more about Henrietta, to learn more about the details of the cell experimentation, what they have done for science and why they are important to our lives. Skloot is a science journalist and has the credentials to dig into the story and inform. I give her a great deal of credit for the ten years she took to research the book and for having the perseverance to continue to contact Henrietta’s relatives who were reluctant to talk to a reporter. Building trust with the family was not an easy task, but eventually Skloot was able to ensure them that her intentions were good. Though the story could have been told from interviews with doctors and possibly from records at Johns Hopkins, what really brings Henrietta alive in my mind is the personal stories of her kin, particularly her daughter, Deborah.
I liked the format Skloot used to write the book. You can hear what she says about this in the FAQ portion of her website.
Critics of the book complain that Skloot has made this a story of race. Personally, I don’t see how you can begin to know Henrietta and her family without talking about race. But, yes, it is more than that. It’s about informed consent, pharmaceutical companies making mega dollars, treatment of patients, and ethics. It is also the story of the quest of a daughter to better know her mother, who died when she was young. It is a story of this daughter’s love for the woman she comes to know.
I am pleased that Rebecca Skloot has set up Henrietta Lacks Foundation, which this year granted five of the Lacks descendents for their education.
There is much to think about after reading this book. I still have questions. Some of the science goes over my head, but Skloot did a good job keeping this in layman’s terms.
Today, due to privacy laws we would not know the name of the woman that the cells were harvested from. I’m in agreement with this but am still glad that in this case, Henrietta Lacks was identified and that through the efforts of Rebecca Skloot that I have a better picture of who Henrietta was. She never knew her contribution to medicine, but it seems to be significant. |
