A
HeLa cell , also
Hela or
hela cell, is a
cell type in an
immortal cell line used in scientific research. It is the oldest and most commonly used human cell line. The line was derived from
cervical cancer cells taken on February 8, 1951 from
Henrietta Lacks, a patient who died of her cancer on October 4, 1951. The cell line was found to be remarkably durable and prolific — which has led to it contaminating many other cell lines used in research.