Chapter 6: Lady's on the Phone

In this chapter Skloot starts to tell you about the journey it took her to write this book. She describes the way that the media and other reporters attacked Henrietta's family with questions about her cells. Not about her. Eleven years after Skloot's obsession about Henrietta and cells began she found a bunch of scientific papers from the "HeLa Cancer Control Symposium" which is in Atlanta. The symposium had been made n honor. Of Henrietta by a professor named Roland Patillo. Patillo was one of Gey's only black students and was Skloot's entrance into the craziness of Henrietta's life and the legacy of her cells. Skloot made contact with Patillo, who had connections to the Lack's family, and he grilled with questions about her intentions. Most people just wanted to know about the cells but Skloot wanted to know about Henrietta. So after a few days of questioning Patillo gave Skloot Henrietta's only living daughter's, Deborah, number. Deborah was excited by the idea of someone wanting to know about her mother because she wanted the same thing. The drama over the cells had caused the Lacks so much pain that Deborah had developed health issues from the stress. It wasn't an easy road for Skloot. After some conversation the family decided they didn't want her to talk to them about Henrietta and she ended up not hearing from Deborah for a year! She tried to contact David, Henrietta's husband, but he was uncooperative as well. The only thing Skloot was getting was hung up on.