Returning the Blessings of an Immortal Life Essay

323 Words2 Pages
Summary of Returning the Blessings of an Immortal Life by Rebecca Skloot In the article “Returning the Blessings of an Immortal Life, Rebecca Skloot talks about a poor southerner named Henrietta Lacks, (HeLa) cells were taken without here knowing, became one of the most important tools in medicine. Even though she has been dead for more than sixty years, her cells are the first immortal cells grown and still living today. Now Rebecca Skloot has a goal to give to the remaining family of the Lacks’ in East Baltimore today, where her children and grandchildren live and struggle with the legacy of her cells. Henrietta’s family did not learn about her immortality until more than twenty years after her death, when scientists investigating HeLa began using her husband and children in research without informed consent. And though the cells had launched a multimillion-dollar industry, her family never saw any of the profits. Henrietta had three sons and two daughters which both have passed away. But the multimillion-dollar foundation has helped the Lacks’ family out by buying a hearing aid for Mrs. Lacks’ youngest son, Zakariyya; truck repairs for her middle son, Sonny; new teeth for her granddaughter Kimberly; braces for her great-granddaughter Aiyana Rodgers; and tuition, books, and fees for five of her grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Response I thought that the Henrietta Lacks’ story was interesting and attracted people because a lot of people could relate to losing someone to cancer. Though, had it not been for scientist taking her cells without her knowing, the search for curing a lot of diseases would still continue. Also, I thought that it was nice of Rebecca Skloot, the author of the article, to give to the descendants of Henrietta off of the multi-million dollar industry and wanting nothing in return. Cohen, Patricia. "Returning the Blessings

More about Returning the Blessings of an Immortal Life Essay

Open Document