"Medical researchers often use cells known as HeLa cells in their work. The ‘immortal cells’ are used to study cancer, aging, AIDS, and more. The name HeLa is a shortening of the name Henrietta Lacks — a woman whose cervical cancer cells were used to create this research cell line, without her knowledge or permission. In this segment, Ira talks with author Rebecca Skloot about ‘The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks,’ a tale of biology and medical ethics."
From http://www.sciencefriday.com/program/archives/201002125
This is an interesting coincidental accompaniment to a RadioLab segment (will add next) about ‘cell immortality’ of a cluster of cells (scientifically known as WI38) derived from a single woman’s aborted child. Those cells now live in over a billion people though the majority of vaccines given over the last 50 years.