I've been reading The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot. The blurb about the book says, "Her name was Henrietta Lacks, but scientists know her as HeLa. She was a poor Southern tobacco farmer who worked the same land as her slave ancestors, yet her cells—taken without her knowledge—became one of the most important tools in medicine. The first “immortal” human cells grown in culture, they are still alive today, though she has been dead for more than sixty years." It's really well written, hard to put down at times, and to be quite honest, shocking.
The HeLa cells have been used for medical research for decades. Doctors, researchers and big pharma have gotten quite wealthy as a result of using her cells for cancer research. Yet her family is poor, undereducated, and many go without medical insurance.
At about 2/3 of the way through the book I couldn't stand not knowing if Skloot was going to do anything to right the wrong that had been inflicted on the Lacks family. So I skipped ahead to the back of the dust jacket and read that the author had set up a scholarship fund in Henrietta's name. Curious, I went to the website and learned that the author is donating a portion of the proceeds from the sale of the book to the foundation. Then I learned that the foundation had already awarded grants for tuition for 5 descendants of Lacks as well as healthcare for 2 members of her immediate family. Feeling guilty for borrowing this book from my library, I immediately went to Barnes & Noble on-line and ordered it. As soon as my book arrives I will return the one I borrowed from the library that is now overdue and in high demand. Thanks, Rebecca Skloot, for taking care of the Lacks family!
