OHT London: The OHT Reading Room - The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot

Book

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot

About the Event

We are excited to host our next “Reading Room “ event where we will discuss "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks” by Rebecca Skloot.

“The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks” introduces us to Henrietta Lacks, a woman whose 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. These cells, named HeLa, have been used in research into the polio vaccine, and into the effects of atomic warfare; they were shot into space, used in AIDS research, but she remains virtually unknown, buried in an unmarked grave. In “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks,” Rebecca Skloot introduces us to the real live woman, the children who survived her, and the…