In 1951, Henrietta Lacks, mother of five, went to Johns Hopkins charity hospital in Baltimore due to extreme abdominal pain. She was diagnosed with an aggressive cervical cancer. But before she was treated with radiation, the attending doctor took two small samples of tissue without her consent or knowledge. One of them was cancerous; the other healthy. Henrietta died later that year at the age of 31, in excruciating pain amd her organs covered in tumors. The doctor passed her cells on to a scientist who had been working to establish an “immortal,” or reproducing, human cell line for cancer research. Mrs. Lacks' cells—dubbed “HeLa” cells—were the first to reproduce naturally in a laboratory setting. They have since become the lab standard, bought and sold by the millions of tons, found in every hospital and laboratory in the world. They have been used to further cancer research, AIDS research, were used to test the Polio vaccine, and were sent into space with NASA in order to study the effects of zero gravity on human cells. The science, even for someone that doesn’t have a head for science, is fascinating, but there is a heartbreaking story behind the woman who unwittingly changed the medical field and the family she left behind.
In The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, Rebecca Skloot goes back and forth between telling a story about science, and examining the ethics involved. Skloot explains how the cells were obtained, how they have been used to benefit medical science, which doctors and hospitals were involved, and how they have profited from HeLa cells. But she also visits Henrietta Lacks' family, who were left in the dark for many years about the “immortality” of their mother at a cellular level, and were never financially compensated. Skloot's book examines the paranoia, bitterness and rage that the Lacks family has dealt with as they fight for recognition of their mother’s contributions to medical science, not to mention the fact that despite the fact that HeLa cells have become a multimillion dollar industry, her descendants struggle to make ends meet—and cannot afford health insurance.
On Wednesday, March 23 at 6:30 p.m., the Missouri History Museum presents "An Evening With Rebecca Skloot," followed by a Q & A with Dr. Danielle Lee of the Urban Science Adventures blog. Space is limited; seating vouchers are available on a first-come, first serve basis. Call 314-746-4599 for more information.
