The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

Brief Summary

In 1951, doctors took cells from Henrietta Lacks' tumor without her knowledge. These cells, named HeLa after her, became the first immortal human cell line. Later, Rebecca Skloot spends years learning Henrietta's story to write a prize-winning nonfiction book, "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks." Her work reveals how HeLa helped to develop the polio vaccine, revealed secrets about cancer and viruses, and led to major advances like in vitro fertilization, cloning, and gene mapping.