The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks in Oly Reads

Feb 08, 2011 Patty rated it really liked it

Most nonfiction leaves me cold. This book left me wanting more. I was especially intrigued by the first part of the book which is more pop science and follows the history of these fascinating hela cells. The second half is more biography of Debra, Henrietta Lachs' daughter. I was fascinated by early medical practices and gynecological procedures. A great book for general readers , doctors, researchers and medical ethicists. ...more

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Sep 15, 2013 Sara rated it really liked it

Shelves: adult-books, read-in-2013, non-fiction, sad

The biggest success of this piece of narrative non-fiction is the blending of stories. The story of the author researching the book, the story of the science, and (probably the most intriguing and fascinating) the story of the Lacks family. I love non-fiction that connects history and biography and science to a real, personal story, and I love that the author manages to insert her own story into this one. It's really well done. It's the kind of book you find yourself telling stories from to frie ...more

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May 01, 2010 jess rated it really liked it

Shelves: audiobook-d, 2010

I'm not sure why it has taken me weeks to write these notes down, but the longer I let it go, the more I will forget. So, here I am, incomplete and faulty memory and unresolved emotions. Forgive me. While I was reading this, I got really sad for a while. I mean, there’s like the fundamental injustice and frustration of the story, and I tend to internalize those kinds of feelings, but also just the fog of cancer that surrounded me everywhere. Someone close to me was diagnosed with cancer while I I'm not sure why it has taken me weeks to write these notes down, but the longer I let it go, the more I will forget. So, here I am, incomplete and faulty memory and unresolved emotions. Forgive me. While I was reading this, I got really sad for a while. I mean, there’s like the fundamental injustice and frustration of the story, and I tend to internalize those kinds of feelings, but also just the fog of cancer that surrounded me everywhere. Someone close to me was diagnosed with cancer while I was reading this, and another friend was struggling with the last stages of the disease, and I was listening to this really intense audiobook with fairly graphic descriptions of Henrietta’s death, and man, it was just a lot of cancer at once. I sort of got lost there for a second. It was hard for me to come back around and write about the book.

I listened to this on audiobook, which contributed greatly to my experience of it. The story was occasionally science-heavy or too emotional, it would have been tough to slog through that on paper. Also, I got to share parts of the book with people who rode in the car with me - namely, my wife & son - which brought up all sorts of discussions about scientific research, families, race, class, gender, cancer, poverty, historic health care/treatment of people of color and women, and the value of scientific research in our society. These are uncomfortable, confusing and important conversations to have.

All of that stuff, well, that's what this book is about. Henrietta was poor, Southern, black, and dying of an aggressive terminal cervical cancer long before modern medicine knew how to treat such a cancer (do they now? it's arguable). She was a generous woman. She loved to dance. She was close to her family and she loved her babies. She was an excellent cook. She died a painful, horrible death that nearly destroyed her spirit when she was only 31. She left behind a husband and five children who grew up motherless, abused, and neglected without Henrietta's love and watchful eye to protect them.

During her treatment at Johns Hopkins for cervical cancer, Henrietta's biopsied cells had been given to a dude who was trying to culture human cells without killing them. For some unimaginable, unknowable reason, Henrietta's cancer cells didn’t die. They are immortal. They don't "time out" like other human cells. They grow almost effortlessly, opening doors for research into so many diseases and so much scientific research. Because of Henrietta's cells, science developed chemotherapy and the polio vaccine. Her cells have been to outer space. In vitro fertilization, cloning and gene mapping almost certainly would not exist without Henrietta's cells.

There is no record that Henrietta gave consent for her cells to be cultured or that she even knew they were taken. She was under anesthesia when her cells were removed. Her husband actually refused to let the hospital take samples after her death. Her family didn't find out about her immortal cells until her youngest was over 20 years old.

This book is mostly the journey of the author, Rebecca Skloot, in her efforts to tell Henrietta's story and her friendship with Henrietta's youngest daughter, Deborah, who struggles with issues surrounding her mother's cells, poverty, crippling health issues and mental illness, and her longing for to know her mother.

The story is convoluted enough to make it difficult to easily discuss, but the fundamental injustice done to the Lacks family is clear. Each family member responds differently - anger, violence, depression, mania, anxiety, alcoholism, distrustfulness, and every other response. It's clear from the very beginning that there is no happy ending for Henrietta, who's long gone and hopefully resting in peace, or for her children, whose lives have been guided by these cells for the better part of the last 40 years (largely to their own detriment).

Henrietta's cells are responsible for many pivotal moments in scientific history and many great things have come from this. However, her own family can't afford health insurance. Her children don't benefit from any of the remarkable discoveries due to her cells because they can barely afford hearing aids or blood pressure medication. Billions of her cells were distributed for free to every medical research facility in the world, so there is no conceivable way to compensate her family for the cells. It's a huge gap in law and logic - her family cannot be compensated, there is no way to make reparations to them for the violation of their mother's body, and the Lacks children are left to deal with the emotional questions of grappling with the death and immortality of a mother they were too young to remember.

This was an excellent read, and I would recommend it to anyone with any remote interest in the subject matter. The story is emotional. Yeah, it’s a little like “the white lady came and saved the day, discovered all the answers and wrote the book” …. So, keep that context in mind. But Skloot’s work to uncover the story of Henrietta Lacks, her family & her cells is a tremendous contribution to the world. It’s just sad that it took a white journalist’s interest in the matter to bring this story to the public. ...more

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Oct 10, 2011 Rena Searles rated it really liked it

This is one of those books that reinforces that old adage: Truth is sometimes stranger than fiction! It is the story of a black woman and her family in the 50's and the aftermath of her harvested cancer cells. Incredible story, both historically and informationally - almost reads like science fiction. Would recommend this to anyone who has ever had concerns about privacy issues and/or cellular research. I admire the tenacity of the author for researching and reporting on a difficult subject. ...more

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Jan 22, 2012 UberApril rated it really liked it

I was sobbing by the end of the book!! The last chapter was very beautiful not entirely sad. I was worried I wasn't going to keep up with science and honestly yeah some of it was intimidating but I didn't feel too lost. It was a little confusing with the time jumps but at the start of the chapters was a helpful timeline graph/ chart. The Where Are They Now and Afterword was worth reading. ...more

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