Many of you are most likely unfamiliar with the story of Henrietta Lacks but the new HBO movie was created to provide insight into one of the most important people in medical history.

Henrietta Lacks was a poor tobacco farmer from southern Virginia. When she was thirty years old, she gave birth to her fifth child, experienced abnormal bleeding, and after further investigation by doctors was diagnosed with cervical cancer. She then went to Johns Hopkins for radiation treatment where doctors removed cancerous tissue samples without her consent. Later that year, Henrietta lost her battle to cancer.

However, her legacy still lives on. The tissue samples were given to Johns Hopkins researcher Dr. George Otto Gey, who noticed an unusual quality to her cells. They were much more durable and multiplied faster than he had ever seen. Prior to this, human cells only possessed the ability to live for a few days and researchers often spent more time trying to keep the cells alive rather than actually conducting experiments. Because of her cells' ability to continue multiplying without dying, her cells were said to be "immortal." They were the first human cells in history viewed with these qualities. Gey created a cell line from the cells from Lack's tumor, terming the line "HeLa" by using the first two letters of both Lack's first and last name.

Starting in the early 1950s, HeLa cells were sold as part of a medical breakthrough to many different research companies and organizations throughout the world. Since then, her cells have been responsible for developing the polio vaccine, cloning, gene mapping, in vitro fertilization, and more. They have also been derived for use in cancer research.

However, neither Henrietta nor her family were ever informed of this immense medical breakthrough using HeLa cells. It wasn't until the 1970s that her family was informed of the situation. According to Gey and other researchers at Johns Hopkins, they weren't legally bound to tell the family about the cells as it was considered routine to extract samples of blood, cells, and tissues from patients without telling them or getting their consent. The issue is that the doctors and researchers were benefiting financially from the HeLa cells. Meanwhile, the financially-struggling Lacks family did not receive compensation for the use of their mother's cells. Many of the family members had health issues, but no health insurance. It is no wonder the family was frustrated after being informed of what they observed as the exploitation of their mother's cells.

The HBO movie, "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" is told through the perspective of Deborah Lacks (Oprah Winfrey), Henrietta's daughter. Along with Deborah, the movie focuses on Rebecca Skloot (Rose Byrne), a journalist, as they embark on a journey to learn more about the woman neither of them knew, and how the use of her cells led to the medical discoveries that would change an innumerable number of lives in the future. Battling family history, mental illness, race, and medical ethics, Deborah's account of her mother's life, death, and the years to follow is an eye-opening look into the history of medicine: a chilling story definitely worth the watch.