Rebecca West Essay

The Immortal life of Henrietta Lacks, this book is intriguing. The contribution of the of the “HeLa cell” it created tremendous bounds in the advancement of science. However, the experiences were dreadful, the Lack’s family went through a lot of it to deliver this to the scientific community. The bias in American health care at the time were unacceptable, therefore, she experienced the atrocious service provided there by the people who worked there. Just reading about what she went through with

Deborah wants to know who her mother was and the Lacks family could not afford a health insurance. The story about Henrietta Lacks is a burden to Lack’s family, Deborah wanted the world to know and honor her mother, but she can not do it alone until Rebecca Skloot came and talked to them, they believe that “GOD sent her to lift the burden from the cells”. Gary and Deborah both believe in God. They just wanted God to take the cells away, because they do not want the burden still around them after the

During the 1950s, a cell line called HeLa was cultivated from a poor, African mother of five who died of cervical cancer named Henrietta Lacks. It was then mass produced for research and generated billions of dollars. Many medicinal treatments and breakthroughs, such as polio, were developed from this cell line helping billions of people to this day. Unfortunately, the woman who ultimately gave her life never received a single penny, nor her family. The Lacks family lived without insurance and still

The theme of poverty is brought up in the narrative many of times in the book “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks”. Poverty play a very important role in the lives of Henrietta Lacks and her family. Nevertheless, because the Lacks family lived in poverty Henrietta Lacks and the Lacks family were kind of taken advantage of. For example the sample taken from Henrietta Lacks was unauthorized and the family was never told why you ask, because they never really had a reason to. This was because the

cover I noticed a proudly standing woman, but she also appeared as the average woman of her time. I began to wonder who this woman, who I assumed to be Henrietta Lacks, was and what made her life immortal. In the beginning, the author, Rebecca Skloot, begins the novel in a class setting with her professor ending his lecture and providing

Henrietta Lacks, this is very evident. There were many examples of Henrietta and her family being overlooked. These situations had many consequences that impacted their lives. When it finally seemed like the true story of Henrietta would never be told, Rebecca Skloot came and offered a different perspective. Henrietta Lacks was hospitalized at a time when doctors often lied or withheld information when they felt it best (63). Often information

In 1951, Henrietta Lacks was diagnosed with cervical cancer at John Hopkins Hospital. Without any consent, Henrietta’s doctors took tissue samples from her cervix and attempted to grow them and keep them alive. These cells, known as HeLa cells, began to grow at an unbelievable rate; The HeLa cell became vital for the development of vaccines and other scientific research. However because of Henrietta’s race and economic standpoint, Henrietta Lacks and the rest of the Lacks family was exploited by

life, it was filled with pain and doctors attempting to save her, or at least find something useful for the science or medical field. On the bright side, she did have the pleasure of seeing her children and husband while staying in John Hopkins. Rebecca Skloot’s The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks illustrates the importance of family in hard times, along with the racist health care system and the advances made in science to prove that even through something detestable, something superior will come

Although it is a tragedy that Henrietta’s family cannot afford medical insurance, I believe that they do not deserve financial compensation from the sales of HeLa cells. My primary reasoning for this is because there is no practical way to go about compensation. At the time of when Henrietta’s cells were removed from her body, the goal was not to find profit, but to further cancer research. This is supported by the fact that Alexis Carrel’s claims of creating the “immortal” chicken heart defamed

First I would like to state that you both brought to light very important points! Kudo’s to you both as these topics are at the heart of society and its perception of medicine. I must begin by stating that I am so glad the medical community has progressed since the time of Henrietta Lacks. It is reassuring to know that much greater progress has been made in treating patients correctly and informing them of what is happening. I am saddened that due to social stigma at that time, Henrietta Lacks was