The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
by Skloot, Rebecca
- Used
- Hardcover
- Condition
- See description
- ISBN 10
- 0230748694
- ISBN 13
- 9780230748699
- Seller
-
Lincoln, Lincolnshire, United Kingdom
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
Synopsis
Rebecca Skloot is an award-winning science writer whose work has appeared in The New York Times Magazine; O, The Oprah Magazine; Discover; and many others. She is coeditor of The Best American Science Writing 2011 and has worked as a correspondent for NPR’s Radiolab and PBS’s Nova ScienceNOW . She was named one of five surprising leaders of 2010 by the Washington Post . Skloot's debut book, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, took more than a decade to research and write, and instantly became a New York Times bestseller. It was chosen as a best book of 2010 by more than sixty media outlets, including Entertainment Weekly , People, and the New York Times . It is being translated into more than twenty-five languages, adapted into a young reader edition, and being made into an HBO film produced by Oprah Winfrey and Alan Ball. Skloot is the founder and president of The Henrietta Lacks Foundation. She has a B.S. in biological sciences and an MFA in creative nonfiction. She has taught creative writing and science journalism at the University of Memphis, the University of Pittsburgh, and New York University. She lives in Chicago. For more information, visit her website at RebeccaSkloot.com, where you’ll find links to follow her on Twitter and Facebook.
Reviews
This is a historically significant book that captures three important points: (1) the lack of ethics in medical research, particularly informed consent; (2) how this lack of medical consent affected a simple African-American family of relatively no sophistication; and (3)that the family of Henrietta Lacks cannot afford health insurance, notwithstanding the enormity of her contribution to science.During 1951, Henrietta Lacks went to Johns Hopkins with a "knot" in her cervix. The biopsy revealed cancer. Tissue was removed and cultured. The cancer was unique in that it continued to grow in a laboratory setting, and were named HeLa cells for their source, Henrietta Lacks. These particular cells were unique in that they do not observe the Hayflick limit, which is the usual lifetime of cancerous cells.These cells were used in the testing by Jonas Salk for his polio vaccine, and are used so regularly in the scientific community that it is estimated 300 scientific papers a month are written on the basis of research performed with HeLa cells. Neither Lacks nor her family gave the physician permission to harvest the cells. When the family, who was relatively unsophisticated, learned that "she was being kept alive," they were extremely concerned, and engaged counsel. They did not understand that it was her tumor only.
(Log in or Create an Account first!)
Details
- Seller
- Anybook.com (GB)
- Seller's Inventory #
- 9878535
- Title
- The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
- Author
- Skloot, Rebecca
- Book Condition
- Used
- Binding
- Hardcover
- ISBN 10
- 0230748694
- ISBN 13
- 9780230748699
- Publisher
- Macmillan
- Place of Publication
- London
- Date Published
- 2010
Terms of Sale
Anybook.com
Based in central Lincoln, Anybook.com. sells exclusively online. We specialise in academic works. All our books are in good condition or better, unless otherwise described. We will respond to your enquiry promptly and mail books out within 1 working day. We use Royal Mail and other reputable couriers at greatly discounted postage rates. As well as Visa and Mastercard, we also accept Switch, Discover and Solo. We also accept Paypal (www.paypal.com) payments. Other methods of payment are possible but please email us for details. Remember if you are unsatisfied in any way with any purchase, we will give you a complete and unconditional refund. E-mail us if you have any questions about the service we offer. Please be aware our prices and shipping costs do not include local import taxes which may need to be paid by the customer upon receipt.
About the Seller
Anybook.com
About Anybook.com
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Stock Photo
- Stock photos are a generic representation of the book and do not reflect the actual item or its condition. These are shown in...
- Jacket
- Sometimes used as another term for dust jacket, a protective and often decorative wrapper, usually made of paper which wraps...