“Can you tell me what my mama’s cells really did?” he whispered. “I know they did something important, but nobody tells us nothing.”
Pg. 250
Several core themes of the book are exhibited in these poignant words from Lawrence Lacks. Questions of medical ethics are raised once we realize that no one in Henrietta’s family was told about her importance. The degree to which Henrietta the person had been separated from the HeLa cells show how science had stripped the cells of their human element. Finally, public ignorance of science and medicine are on full display in this quote. For Lawrence to be unaware of the HeLa cell line, when anyone familiar with the basics of molecular science would recognize it, shows how distant the science world can be from the average person.