The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

HeLa cells have been instrumental in some of the most important advancements in medicine, from the polio vaccine to gene mapping and in vitro fertilisation. The entire cell line derives from a single sample of cancer cells, taken in 1951 from a poor black tobacco farmer, without her consent. Her cells have been bought and sold by the billions, yet she remained virtually unknown. Her name was Henrietta Lacks, this book tells her story.