The immortal life of Henrietta Lacks

Ben Dillard
The immortal life of Henrietta Lacks
Henrietta was an African American tobacco farmer who was married, and had five children, the oldest Elsie, was deaf and mute. At the age of 30 Henrietta was diagnosed with cervical cancer in February 1951.She was treated at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore, in a time in which hospitals were still segregated. As doctors customarily did at that time, during her treatment without her knowledge and consent a sample of her cancerous tissue was taken and given to researchers. In the lab, the researcher discovered that Henrietta’s cells were extremely good at growing replicating themselves, and they aggressively climbing up the sides of test tubes. Because they had the ability to regenerate quickly, the cells, named “HeLa cells,” have been invaluable to medical research. They have been the source of human cells that many scientist and doctors have tested vaccines (including the polio vaccine) and drugs. Henrietta’s cells are called the first “immortal cell line.” This was because on other person’s cells have lived longer than a few days outside of the body, but Henrietta’s cells are still alive and growing to this day in almost every research lab around the world. The family wasn’t even aware that her cells were being used in this way until the 1970s, when they were told by chance. Scientists had tried to sever Henrietta’s identity from the cells. Medical students and scientists report being told by professors that the cells had originated with a “white woman” named Helen Lane. But scientists did occasionally seek out Henrietta’s family to ask for tissue samples. Because of the family’s circumstances and poor of education, it was hard for them to understand why people wanted these samples, and they grew very suspicious of scientists and journalists who visited them over the years, wanting something from them. Henrietta’s younger daughter, Deborah who was only 2 when her mother died, had once asked researchers if, by studying Henrietta’s cells, they could tell what her mother’s favorite color was, or whether or not she liked to dance. The entire book gave me a deep interest in science and the science community. It has also opened my eyes as to how far racism has tried to overtake and rewrite history.
My Interview:
Me: Why did you suggest this book?
Barbra: Well, when you asked me to suggest a book that had to do with biology this was the first book to come to mind. My good friend lent it to me, and after I got a few pages into the book I couldn’t put it down.
Me: What do you think got you so interested in this book?
Barbra: Hmmm, well I think it’s the fact that science, well the science community tried to sever all ties with Henrietta because she was a black woman. They found one of the greatest discovery in the scientific world, and the family has not been properly accredited biased on the fact that the credited would have gone to a Black Woman.
Me: Having said that, what was your favorite part of the book?
Barbra: Hahaha, I don’t know what to tell you. I just feel in love with the entire book! I just love how the author goes through this amazing journey to find out what really happened all because of this tiny spark that her high school teacher started by simply giving her, her name. What about you? What was your favorite part?
Me: Hahaha, My favorite part was when she was talking about how sometimes a few of Henrietta’s children would go swimming in this bay that she always told them to not go swimming in because it was dirty and they would get sick, and when she heard that they were down there she would go get a switch and go down to the bay and whip them. It just reminded me of the stories that my Dad and my Grandmother use to always tell me about my dad, his siblings, and his cousins would always get in trouble and how they would always get beet with a switch by their grandmother.
The conversation branched off and we went from tangent to tangent. We mostly talked about family stories that related to some of Henrietta’s stories, and also about how the only real reason people didn’t want to give her credit was because she was a woman, and because she was black. Over all we had a wonderful discussion, and I am actually very glad I was able to read this book, and I gladly suggest it to anyone who is remotely interested in science, or a great novel.