The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks - Book Report/Review Example

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks Summary The book highlights the medical life of Henrietta, which mostly included a series of diseases, lack of treatment and failure to follow up on medication and appointments. This was partly because of her little knowledge on reading, writing and especially on medical health. It contains detailed information right from when Henrietta suspected something was wrong too when she had to be driven all the way to John Hopkins Hospital for a more intensive checkup (Skloot, 2010). The doctor’s analysis of her cervix, his discovery of the tumor and the record he kept based on the findings are part of this manuscript. It also includes what happened right from when she was diagnosed with malignant cervical cancer, treatment, deteriorating condition until her death. Henrietta’s history is also included including right from when she was born to how she grew up. It touches on the Lacks’ lives including their schooling, work and the kind of relations they had. The author goes on to interview key people in Henrietta’s life to get a give a more in-depth knowledge on the kind of person she was and what she went through (Skloot, 2010). Near the completion of the volume, there is a highlight of the debate regarding moral obligations and the law when it comes to medical research. Purpose of the book The author uses the book to describe issues to do with race, class, ethics, and science that emanate from Henrietta Lacks’ story and the Hela cells. The book aims at giving a clear description on these issues based on the story of Lacks. Also in the book, the author also highlights the discussion on the legal and moral obligations when it comes to owning tissue and research. Writing a book would enable the writer to tell the untold story of Henrietta and her family with precise focus on her sister Deborah. It tries to reveal what they went through trying to cope with how the cells were got from Henrietta’s body and their continued existence. Critique of the book Some of the childhood stories and the descriptions especially in the ninth and tenth chapters of the book are quite irrelevant. There are elaborate details about cancer and its perceptions by doctors at the time. It also includes how research in cervical cancer including how to diagnose and treat it evolved with time as well as how Henrietta’s cells got into the hands of Dr. George Gey. The history of the doctor’s life, as well as his medical personnel, however is unnecessary to the purpose of the book. It is quite hard to get an understanding of what Debora is trying to say as it has not been clearly defined or simplified. It has not been organized well for the reader to understand. The content in the documentary done by BBC about Henrietta has not been adequately discussed. The story lacks a chronological order for the events that took place. This styles it incomprehensible to track the feelings as the events unfolded with some of the details being irrelevant. Some of the details about Dr. Carrel’s chicken heart are not as pertinent with the important information being the comparison between the chicken cells and HeLa cells (Skloot, 2010). The author gives good information about the lack of clarity in some of the facts such as the exact dates. She as well has provided the sources for her information, which is an indication of the authenticity of the book. On the debate about the laws and ethics around tissue research, the book contains various expert opinions, but no clear detail of the actual rules put in place to control tissue research, and what these laws entail. The author does make a conclusion on where the family of Henrietta stands when it comes to the use of her cells in research. They do not want to stand in the way of medical research yet they are still hurt by the advantage taken by them by the doctors at Hopkins Hospital (Skloot, 2010). The family, particularly, her daughter has been unable to pay some of her medical fees despite her mother’s cells being used to carry out medical breakthroughs. This shows their wish for financial compensation for Henrietta’s tissue samples in research. According to Henrietta’s husband, the cells were taken even without his consent. They were sold without the familys knowledge, which made the entire family angry both at the medical institution and at the researchers as they felt greatly taken advantage of (Skloot, 2010). Issues to with race are also evident when it came to medical research whereby African Americans made the most preferred choice of guinea pigs when it came to conducting medical research. This was primarily because they were illiterate and has no financial means. Sickle cell anemia, which commonly affected the African Americans, was not adequately funded, despite them being used for a lot of medical research. There has been considerable information linking the issues to do with racial discrimination that plays a part in Henrietta Lack’s story. This includes the segregation that existed when it came to accessing medical care to the quality of care they received. On the other hand, details about how class played a major role in the story is not clearly indicated. The detailed description enables the readers to understand to understand better what impact the research on Henrietta’s tissue had on them. The connection between the book and knowledge about health practices and policies There was a little medical knowledge at the time made research more difficult. This was in addition to the lack of updated technology when it came to handling these cultures. This is evidenced by the author’s mention of some of the problems encountered at the time when it came to successfully managing to grow cells for study (Skloot, 2010). The unethical nature used in medical research is disturbing, especially to note that Dr. Lawrence Wharton Jr who was overseeing her treatment took samples of her healthy cervix together with the one of the cancer tissue before the treatment without her knowledge. The performance of hysterectomies on healthy black women so that medical students would learn how to carry out the procedure is wrong (Skloot, 2010). Conclusion In this book, Skloot is more concerned with the highlighting of the life of Henrietta Lacks in relation to various dynamics in her family and in her surrounding environment. In this review, the focus has sought to relay the life in the context of Henrietta’s medical condition when she is hospitalized at John Hopkins Hospital (Skloot, 2010). Generally, the book is compete with literary aspects that are employed in the relaying of the book’s context. Reference Skloot, R. (2010). The immortal life of Henrietta Lacks. New York: Crown Publishers. Read More