Chapter 37: “Nothing to Be Scared About” 1. What physical ailments did Deborah suffer from as a result of the excitement and stress of seeing her mother’s cells for the first time, and learning about Elsie? (See p. 296-297)
Her ___________________ ________________ and blood sugar were so high that she was in danger of having a ________________ or a _______________ attack.
2. Why did Deborah decide to go back to school? (See p. 298) She wants to understand _________________ better, so the information about her mother and sister wouldn’t scare her as much.
3. Why was Deborah unable to attend the National Foundation for Cancer Research’s Henrietta Lacks conference? (See p. 299)
___________________________, was the date they were scheduled to leave for Washington D.C. The airports were shut down and the conference was cancelled.
4. Explain how Davon’s heroic actions saved Deborah’s life. (See pp. 299-300)
Deborah had a ________________ in church, and ___________________ (person) was the first to notice and alert others. He got the car running, so her husband could get her right in the car and immediately take her to the hospital. He also kept her_____________________in the car, which the doctor said saved her life.
5. What obstacle kept Deborah from realizing her dream of returning to school? (See p. 302)
She didn’t have enough ____________. Her ___________________ _________________ checks barely covered her expenses.
6. What did Pullum ask Skloot to “preach” about at JaBrea’s baptism? (See p. 303)
He asked her to explain to the _________________________ about Henrietta’s cells and what they had done for _______________________.
7. According to Deborah and Pullum, how is Henrietta’s story going to be different for Henrietta’s great-grandchildren and future generations? (See p. 304)
They will know how Henrietta’s cells helped the world, and if they get an ____________________, they will understand how these cells made a ______________________.
Chapter 38: “The Long Road to Clover”
1. What string of events in 2009 suggests that, if Skloot had not begun researching Henrietta’s story a decade earlier, it may have been lost forever? (See p. 305)
The people in the town of ___________________ were dying off, and the town disappeared.
2. At the time of this book’s publication, how had the lives of Henrietta’s great- and great-great-grandchildren been affected by Skloot’s research, and by the knowledge and understanding of Henrietta’s contribution to science? (See p. 308)
______________________ appears to have become important to them. They are planning to earn college degrees and one had entered _______________________ school.
3. Skloot begins and ends the book with Deborah’s voice. How does this choice impact the reader’s experience of the story? (See p. 309)
Instead of the book being a scientific treatise on cells, the book becomes a story about the woman from whose body the cells have come and about the _____________________ she never had the chance to know.
Where They Are Now/Afterword
4. How did Deborah’s death change the lives of her brothers? (See p. 312)
They focus more now on the importance of the cells for society than on suing _________________ _________________.
5. What legal options do the Lackses have? What is their position on suing over the use of HeLa? (See p. 315)
There were no ________________ in place to protect them from _________________ using tissue samples. They cannot sue over the use of HeLa.
6. If Henrietta Lacks could know how important her cells have been to science, do you think she would approve of the fact that they were taken from her without her knowledge or consent? Explain your answer. (Respond to this question in your own words.)