The HeLa Cells: How One Patient's Cancer Built Modern Biology

In 1951, a Black woman named Henrietta Lacks died of cervical cancer. Cells taken from her tumor — without her knowledge or consent — became the first immortal human cell line and went on to enable the polio vaccine, IVF, gene mapping, and the HPV vaccine itself. The story is both a triumph and a reckoning.

May 3, 2026