Friday, February 12th, 2010

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

HeLa cells stained with Hoechst 33258 stain. Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons contributor TenOfAllTrades

Medical researchers often use cells known as HeLa cells in their work. The 'immortal cells' are used to study cancer, aging, AIDS, and more. The name HeLa is a shortening of the name Henrietta Lacks -- a woman whose cervical cancer cells were used to create this research cell line, without her knowledge or permission. In this segment, Ira talks with author Rebecca Skloot about 'The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks,' a tale of biology and medical ethics.

Guests

Rebecca Skloot
Author, "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" (Crown, 2010)
Science Writer
Memphis, Tennessee

Related Books

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

Related Links

• Henrietta Lacks Foundation

Segment produced by:Christopher Intagliata

Friday, February 12th, 2010

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