Before 1951, the ability to grow cells derived from animal tissue remained elusive. While cells derived could grow for a short period of time, they ignominiously died and could not be propagated. This changed in 1951 when a woman by the name of Henrietta Lacks was biopsied for a painful tumor and later died. Cells derived from her cervical cancer were found to thrive in an artificial environment. This gave rise to the birth of biotechnology and the techniques learned from propagating these cells would eventually lead to advancements in finding a Polio vaccine. For this assignment, listen to the Radiolab Podcast.
Post a response that addresses the following:
- First indicate the effect of voices heard in describing the historical events. Did they move you in any way?
- There’s a controversy over the ownership of the cells.
- Do you think it was appropriate to take cells from a biopsy for personal research without consent?
- Do you think it was ethical for the lab assistant to go into the morgue to retrieve MORE cells from the corpse without the family’s consent?
- Do you feel Henrietta’s economical status factored into the removal of her cells for such purposes without consent?
- Do you feel Henrietta’s racial background factored into the removal of her cells for such purposes without consent?
- Henrietta’s cells were freely passed along around the world. It is said that she is immortal because of this. Because John’s Hopkins did not make any money and aided greatly to the fields of Science and Medicine, do you feel that they are obligated to provide compensation to the Lacks family?
- Read through the following article about hairy cell leukemia. In this case, the University of California and David Golde received money from the sale of the cells derived from this biopsy. Is this fair independent of the outcome of the court case?
This assignment is due May 4.
-The effects of the voices heard when describing the historical events really moved me. The voices from the 3 people describing the events of the Tumor from Henrietta in order going back n forth from person to person with the really soothing music made me picture exactly how the Tumor looked like and how the Doctors would extract the pieces of the Tumor to test it in Test Tubes. It sounded like two students learning from a really mature teacher who was the Doctor Howard Jones. He was 98 turning 99. He sounded like he was way younger than that maybe perhaps 60s least. The repetitiveness of the words of his assistant used when Gai showed the Tumor to everyone pulled me into that event as if I was at that Town Meeting. The music gave it more emphasis of the vents as well.
-There’s been a Controversy with the ownership of the cells and i personally think that the owners should’ve been the family of Henrietta. It’s not right for people to take the cells from the biopsy for personal research without consent of the family especially if it was inside the woman’s womb. they should’ve at least asked first. But on the other hand, if they didn’t learn about the Tumor, we wouldn’t have known how it all started and not find ways to get rid of it to begin with.
-It was Definitely NOT right for the lab assistant Mary to go into the morgue to retrieve more cells. If they said that doctors took pieces of the tumor beforehand and had extra pieces for Doctor Gai, then they could’ve cooperated with one another instead of wanting to become famous over finding the cure for it. The Tumor was even growing each day. There was no Point in getting extra samples for their own benefit whatsoever.
-I feel that it was her economical status that factored into the removal of her cells for research without her consent. These events happened when White people had more Power and Money while Black people were in Poverty and just being used for the Light skinned benefit. So I feel that the Light Skinned people just went and got the cells from this woman, and didn’t even give any money to her family for making the Doctors discover this kind of thing.
-Henrietta’s racial background really factored into the removal. This event was back when Whites didn’t get along with the Blacks at all. White people felt as if they can do whatever they want to the Black people back then and apparently taking the cells of the Colored woman without the consent of her Family for their benefit of getting more money was part of it as well. I mean it’s good that they’re trying to find ways to find cures but really it’s just stealing if you don’t tell anyone in the family beforehand just because of Color differences. The lab assistant couldn’t even look at her face when she was extracting more cells when she shouldn’t have. All she did was look at her toes and said that she didn’t know how to take care of her nails with the chipped nail polish and also they didn’t even know the Person’s NAME of whom they got the samples from which goes to show they didn’t even care about her.
-Yes, I feel that even if John’s Hopkins didn’t make any money and aided greatly to the fields of Science and Medicine, they are obligated to provide compensation to the Lacks Family. This Tumor was spread around the world into hundreds of different labs and was tested around the 1950’s when Polio was an Epidemic. The only way to find the Vaccine for Polio was if they had enough of Polio Virus to do so, and the Hela Cell (the Tumor cell that Gai named it) was the answer to that. The Guy that Gai sent the cell found it when he figured the Polio virus loved the Hela Cell, that when he placed it inside the Hela Cell, Hela would Copy it, and make another Polio Virus and was able to make the Vaccine. So I feel if the Tumor cell from Henrietta was able to Aid Science and Medicine greatly and EVEN find the Vaccine for Polio at the time, they should’ve given the Lack’s family a lot of credit for it. Especially if it took them 25 Years to actually figure out the Name of the Person they took the Cells from…
-The University of California and David Golde received money from the sale of the cells derived from Moore’s biopsy. This is seriously unfair. They made Moore sign a written consent that said the hospital could DISPOSE of any severed tissue or member by means of Cremation! and Golde has been aware of the potential for financial benefit deriving from Moore’s bodily tissue and fluids when he obtained the medical consent which he did NOT disclose this to Moore. Golde was taking advantage of the situation because each time Moore was following what Golde told him to do just so he can obtain profit. Each time Moore would visit, Golde would take so many additional samples from him that they made Moore want to sign another Consent saying that they have the right in any cell line or any other potential product which might be developed from the tissues/fluids obtained from him. Moore figured what they were doing and sent them to court. Which was the right thing to do. I’m sure if they told him beforehand, none of that would’ve happened but they didn’t. Or at least give Moore some profit from what they did using his Cells instead of keeping the Money for themselves.
– It was weird to hear the voices of Dr. Jones (almost 99 years old) who was the first doctor who saw Ms. Lacks after her incident, George Guy’s former lab assistant Mary, and also Rebecca the journalist who experienced and new everything possible about that Henrietta Lacks story. I must say that Dr. Jones sounded much younger. The 4 individuals telling the story of Henrietta Packs made me want to listen until the end and learn more about her. I never heard of her and I am sure that I am not the only one. Her daughter Debra moved me a lot when she spoke about how she misses her mother which she lost when she was 15 months old. Her mother did leave 5 children at such a young age (31 years old). Her cousin had such a powerful voice when he sang and preached.The background music felt like I was watching a science documentary in the Museum of Natural History.
– It is shocking when anyone violate someone’s privacy even if they are dead. I believe that if anyone should off own Henrietta cells , it should off been her immediate family. I don’t think that cells from Henrietta’s biopsy should off been taken without the family’s approval for personal research . It was completely inappropriate. It obviously affected Debra, her daughter. She just wanted closer. It is biter sweet because a major discovery was made by Dr. Guy because of this violation of privacy. Scientists were able to learn about tumors, understand how they start, and try to find ways to prevent them.
– I think that it was unethical for Mary, the lab assistant to go into the morgue to retrieve more cells from the corpse without the family’s consent. She should off definitely asked for their permission before doing so. It was completely not right for her do that. Why were more cells taken form Henrietta’s body when the one that they received originally were growing already and at a very fast paste? I truly did not understand the purpose of stealing more cells other than greed. She and Dr. Guy knew they were doing something wrong from the start, that is why they did not ask for anyone’s consent.
– I feel that Henrietta’s economical status and racial background were factors into the removal of her cells for such purposes without consent. This occurred during a period of time when white men had the money and the power while people of color were mostly poor and powerless. There was a lot of tension between the two races. She was black woman (light or not does not matter) living in Baltimore, 31 years old mother of five kids. Nothing was mentioned about a husband or father for the kids. She was probably a hard working, struggling, single mother who did the best she can to raise her children. I remember Mary, Dr. Guy’s lab assistant talking about going to the morgue to extract more cells but could not look at Henrietta’s face. She instead criticized the nail polish on her toes which was chipped. I believe that Ms.Lacks was an easy target of the society because of her skin color and also because she was probably poor. It is a very sad reality even today.
– Henrietta Lacks never gave anyone the right to use her cells for research or have her cells freely passed along around the world. I believe that even though John Hopkins did not make any money and aided greatly to the fields of Science and Medicine, him as well as anyone involve in using Ms. Lacks’s cells without her consent or her family consent should be obligated to provide compensations to the Lacks family members, children first (if any are left), grandchildren, great grand children, brother and sisters (if any are still alive), etc. In the 1950’s when the Polio epidemic started, the Hela cells which originated from Ms. Lacks and named by Dr. Guy was the answer to finding a vaccine to that virus. Polio loved the Hela cells so much that Dr.Guy placed the virus inside the Hella cell. The cells would keep copying the Polio virus which lead to a Polio vaccine. The government even open the first Polio factory vaccine. Similar tests were done to find vaccines for other viruses like yellow fever, hepatitis, and many others.
All these medical findings were made thanks to Ms. Lacks’ tumor cells. She saved millions of lives and still is. Even more disturbing, no one from Ms. Lack family, especially her children, knew anything about what was done to their mother until more than 20 years later.
– In Moore’s case, I think that the outcome was fair because everything started with his doctor (Dr. Gold) and if anyone should be sued or sent to jail, it should be him. He was dishonest with his patient.It was also unfair because even though Mr. Moore signed the consent stating that the hospital could dispose of any severed tissue or member using the cremation method, Dr. Gold FORGOT to mention to him the financial gain that he will get using Mr. Moore property ( bodily tissues and fluids). If he discussed it with him prior to signing the consent, Mr. Moore would off never signed it. Maybe, he would off if there was a profit for him.
Dr. Gold find an easy target ( a patient) who trusted him, went to any appointment scheduled, allowed Dr. Gold to take sample after samples, and even signed new consents. He took advantage of his patient. Dr. Gold is a doctor who will obviously stop at nothing for money, even lie to his patient. The University of California which was supervised at the time by who else, Dr.Gold, did receive money after selling Mr. Moore’s cells.
Mr. Moore did figure it out later and decided to take them to court however there were no harsh consequences for the doctor. The judges should off been more considerate towards the patient physical, emotional,and mental stress. After all, his cancer was developed into a cell line and its commercialization. The profit should be shared with him as well. It is just amazing to see people who already have money, trying to get more money. Even if it means violating a major rule in your profession, in this case, being honest with the patient.
The effect of voices heard in describing the historical events really was very interesting. the four individuals did a very good job taking about the Tumor from Henrietta. doctor Howard Jones, a man who is 98 years old but has a voice of a 30 year old person, thought at a university and was the first doctor to see Lacks after she found about her incident with tumor. George Gey, Rebecca, Mary also came across this story and knew what they were talking about the Henrietta Lacks story. the music made it very dramatic and sad.
i don’t think there should be any controversy about the ownership of the cells but to give it to the family members and let them decide what to do with it. they should have gotten permission from the daughter and then they should have taken it. it is also very heart touching that they did this while she was dead and from her womb. they should’ve at least asked first. the only good part about what they did was that the scientist know now about the tumor and how to prevent it.
i think it was very wrong for the lab assistant Mary to go into the morgue to steel more cells without talking to others. i don’t understand why they would need more cells if the previous ones were good for the research. i think Mary wanted to sell them or wanted to distribute it to more and more scientists. she knew that she was doing some thing wrong that’s why she didn’t ask for anyone’s permission. she should loose her job for this because no one knows what else she could have done with the body.
I think Henrietta’s racial and economical status both did factored into the removal of her cells because she was a poor black woman who was supporting 5 kids and on top of that she was struggling in life with her kids and the tumor she had. during this time period whites had much more power then the black people. they were much more wealthier then the blacks. black people were more like slaves to the whites. i think she was an easy target for the whites to try there experiment on without letting her family know or even giving any financial support to her family. she was a victim that couldn’t do any thing but her family could have done some thing to get Henrietta justice, some thing like filling a law suit but every one knows during that time the judge was a white man, so he always took the white mans side.
its true that John’s Hopkins did not make any money and aided greatly to the fields of Science and Medicine but its also not fair to her and her family that they don’t know about the cells being distributed around the world for medical research. its like waking up in the hospital and finding out that the scientist or doctors took your hand off from your body for medical research and its traveling around the world for research without even informing you about it. lacks never gave anyone the right to distribute her cells around the world for research. there were many good things that came out of the tumor cell even thought it was not appropriate for them to do what they did. from the research that the scientist did on the tumor cell from Henrietta they were able to find the Vaccine for Polio. i think they should have given lack’s family a good amount of money or some type of credit.
i think it was not fair that David Gold the doctor, sold the cells that came from Moores biopsy and received money from it. The university made Moore sign a written document that said the doctor could dispose any severed tissue or member by the method of Cremation. the doctor took advantage of Moore because before signing the document the doctor did not tell Moore the amount of money he will be getting from Moores body parts. if Moore knew about this, he would have never gave the doctor the permission to dispose any thing out of his body. the doctor took advantage of him that’s why i think he should go to jail for it and loose his job. Moore did found about the doctor later on and took him to the court for it. the doctor was not punished that much for his consequences but i think that the money that the doctor made should be givin to Moore.
-Hearing those three people go back and forth about Henrietta Lack’s tumor was something I found very weird. It gave me a vivid picture of what the tumor looked like and I found it very upsetting that they find some much interest in this. Even when the doctors biopsied her and removed fragments of the tumor I thought of that as gross. It also sounded like two students were interviewing Doctor Howard Jones. He was turning 99 and was impressed at what he stumbled upon. Although he was very old he sounded relatively younger. Also the sound effects made the whole seen imaginable and creepy.
-There is a controversy with the ownership of the cells and Ms. Lacks because I personally think that the family should be the one to give them away for studies, since she is no longer living. I don’t think that its right for people to take the cells from her biopsy for personal research without the consent of the family. I think that in the name of science, they should have still asked for permission even though it would eventually allow them to learn more about the tumor and how to find its growth early on.
-I think that it was wrong of the lab assistant Mary to retrieve more cells from the morgue. As it was said earlier they place the original sample in tubes and they grew over the period of some days. If any cells were to be used I believe that those should have been used. To go to the morgue and harvest more cells to me is something inhumane and I don’t think it’s right under any circumstances.
-I think that because she was black and that her economic status would have not been very high at the time made it possible for them to do such a thing. That to me is a sign of using someone even though they are dead and to top it off they made a discovery which lead to them becoming rich and never thought to reimburse Ms. Lacks’ family. I think greed will always run the rich.
-I think that Henrietta’s racial background really did factor into the removal of her cells. During her time racism was ever prevalent and I believe that the scientist did not really care about moral issues but about making a discovery that would have made them rich. While it is a good thing to search for cures that will eventually save lives I don’t think that it should be done at the cost of another human beings loss. The lab assistant couldn’t even look at the corpse when she extracted the cells. This only goes to show you that they were in it only for the money and nothing else.
-Yes, I believe that even if John’s Hopkins didn’t make any money and aided greatly to the fields of Science and Medicine, that they are obligated to provide compensation to the Lacks Family. This Tumor was spread around the world into hundreds of different labs and was tested around the 1950′s when Polio was an Epidemic. The only way to find the Vaccine for Polio was if they had enough of Polio Virus to do so, and the Hela Cell (the Tumor cell that Gai named it) was the answer to that. The Guy that Gai sent the cell found it when he figured the Polio virus loved the Hela Cell, that when he placed it inside the Hela Cell, Hela would Copy it, and make another Polio Virus and was able to make the Vaccine. So I feel if the Tumor cell from Henrietta was able to Aid Science and Medicine greatly and EVEN find the Vaccine for Polio at the time, they should’ve have given Lack’s family a lot of credit for it. Especially if it took them 25 Years to actually figure out the Name of the Person they took the Cells from…
-The University of California and David Golde received money from the sale of the cells derived from Moore’s biopsy. This is seriously unfair. They made Moore sign a written consent that said the hospital could dispose of any severed tissue or member by means of Cremation! and Golde has been aware of the potential for financial benefit deriving from Moore’s bodily tissue and fluids when he obtained the medical consent which he did NOT disclose this to Moore. Golde was taking advantage of the situation because each time Moore was following what Golde told him to do just so he can obtain profit.
Violetta Shebshayevich
Biology 1101-7900
Prof. Seto
Assignment # 4
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks is a story about a black woman who discovered her own tumor in 1950. I found this story very sad. I think it was totally inappropriate to laugh loud on a radio before the beginning of the story. The woman was on her own when she had cancer. He called her cousin. She needed emotional support, obviously, but she was by herself. The tumor was very soft. A 99 years old doctor compared her tumor with a jelly. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks is story of medicine and family. Henrietta Lacks was a mother of five in Baltimore. She was a poor African American migrant from the tobacco farms of Virginia. Henrietta died from an aggressive cancer at the age of 30 in 1951.
Her name was Henrietta Lacks, but scientists know her as HeLa. The HeLa cell line is the first “immortal” cell line. It became a solution to overcoming many impediments in biomedical research. The HeLa cell developed cures and drugs that have the potential to improve the lives of millions of people. That collection of cells derives from the now-deceased Henrietta Lacks, an African-American mother from Baltimore, Maryland, kept alive for decades without her children’s knowledge or permission. HeLa’s Immortal Cell Lines led to major improvements in research and experimentation. These cells do not die of old age. Immortal cell lines can grow indefinitely. Immortal cell lines can survive after being divided and shared. Scientists used HeLa cells to develop the polio vaccine and drugs that treat Parkinson’s disease and leukemia.
Normally it is not appropriate to take cells from a biopsy for personal research without consent. However, under circumstances, if that personal research will eventually help and cure million of other sick people, it might be appropriate. It is appropriate if it will guarantee a 100 % success in medical treatment. Henrietta’s cells were taken without her knowledge and became one of the most important tools in medicine.
I do not think that it was ethical for the lab assistant to go into the morgue and retrieve MORE cells from the corpse without the family’s consent. There is a code of ethics, confidentiality law in medicine, and HIPAA violations. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) was established in 1996. Violators of such act can even face jail term. It includes rules, standards and implementation guides. Consent form is one of the important forms in hospitals today. If it is not signed by a patient or family members, no medical care or cells retrieval can be done for a patient.
I believe that in the 1950’s Henrietta’s economical status factored into the removal of her cells for such purposes without consent. Henrietta Lacks was even buried in an unmarked grave. There was no privacy law back in the 1950’s. Henrietta Lacks remains virtually unknown. A sample of her cancerous tissue was taken without her knowledge or consent. Known as HeLa cells, their stunning potency gave scientists a building block for countless breakthroughs, beginning with the cure for polio.
I also believe that Henrietta’s racial background factored into the removal of her cells for such purposes without consent. This should not have been done without the express permission of the Henrietta Lacks family. In the past, people have not been as ethical. However, the contributions of HeLa cells to science are absolutely staggering and cannot be over-stated. Henrietta’s racial background played a very important role why her cells were removed without consent. In 1900-1950s African American struggled for Economic Equality in the United States. It was a time of racial discrimination. Racial discrimination often relegated them to low-paying service jobs.
Henrietta’s family continued to live in poverty and frequently poor health, and their discovery decades later of her unknowing contribution–and her cells’ strange survival–left them full of pride, anger, and suspicion. Her family was victimized by socioeconomic conditions and racism. They even couldn’t obtain
health coverage while these cells made a lot of money for the health establishment. It is totally understanding to me that Lack’s family has a sense of betrayal and loss. I am not sure about compensation part. So many years have passed. Compensation should be provided to her children. She had 5 children. If they are still alive, they are entitled for compensation, but not all of her other relatives.
Article Moore v. Regents of the University of California dealt with the issue of property rights in one’s own body parts. I noticed that the decision was filled in 1996; however John Moore first visited UCLA Medical Center on October 5, 1976. Twenty years have passed. During these twenty years many laws have changed. Even today doctors and lawyers should only keep medical records for 10 years. When I read the decision, I was surprised that he lost the case not because of the time frame, but because Moore had no right to any share of the profits realized from the commercialization of anything developed from his discarded body parts. The court even allowed him 20 years after it happened to bring a claim for any injury that he sustained as a result of the physician’s failure to disclose those circumstances.
-Yes the effects on the voices describing this historical event moved me. Listening to the background music and the voices of Henrietta Lacks daughter Debroh and her cousin Gary how it affected them. Her mother cells were traveling all over the world and even in space. Also how George Guy was giving away these cells for free and advertising it. The interesting part that got me was hearing she died and her cells were alive.
-The controversy over who owns the cells, the official owner of the cells is Henrietta Lacks, but before she died Guy was experimenting with her cells. He discovered that instead of the cells dying the grey and kept growing. I personally think the cells should be given to her family not the rest of the world.
-No I don’t think it appropriate to take cells from a biopsy for personal research. That was part of her and for it not to be tested and be sent around the world. They should have at least asked permission from her family.
-When they found out about her cells growing, they should have consulted her family and let them know what is going on. Instead of experimenting and sending it around the world; her family deserves to know what and where her cells are.
-Henrietta’s economic status should not have anything to do with the removal of her cells. In this case it did with her being African American and while there was still poverty occurring. I guess George Guy felt that it was okay for him to just take someone else’s cell and experiment with it.
– The Lack’s family deserves some kind of pay back; Henrietta’s cells were alive while she passed away. Her cells were passed on to many different laboratories and different people; People who didn’t even know who Henrietta Lacks was. Her cells also went into space, and even around the world. Many people got hold of Henrietta’s cell before her own family did. They do deserve something; she is immortal because of this and can’t rest in peace. John Hopkins did not make any money out of it, but it benefited him greatly in the field of science and medicine.
– In Moore’s case it was unreasonable, because David Gold, Moore’s doctor sold his cells from his biopsy and mad a profit from it. What Moore didn’t realize is that Dr. Gold was using him and making a big profit out of him. Moore was asked to sign a written document stating that the doctor could dispose any severe tissue or member by method of cremation. Later when Moore realize what is going on he took the doctor to court to settle matters, where Moore lost the case. Moore trusted his doctor and probably never taught this would happen; he was a loyal patient who Dr. Gold took advantage of.
The effect of the voices in the podcast was to be able to connect to the listeners and show what was taking place at that moment in history. It did not move me because it was too many people telling a story all at once and each speaker seemed to only have a short time to speak about what and how it affects them. I feel that if it was narrated by one person it would work better.
I feel there will always be a controversy over the ownership of the cells, because there were no proper procedures put in place from the start.
I don’t think it was appropriate to take cells from a biopsy for personal research without consent, but at the same time, it was a phenomenal discovery. I feel that the family should have been informed about this discovery.
I think it was very unethical for Mary to get more cells. I was confused about why they had to get more cell when the ones that they had was already growing at a fast pace. At this point I think they just started treating Henrietta’s body as if she was nothing. I also feel that is the reason why they never let the family know about the cells because Mary, Gray and everyone else will not be able to do whatever with her body.
I do feel that Henrietta’s economic status factored into the removal of her cells for such purposes with consent. This occurred during a period before Civil Rights when African Americans were struggling for jobs, education and financial status. The fact that Henrietta discovered her tumor, by lying in a bathtub and inserting her finger into her vagina. She probably had never seen a doctor until then and was not sure of what to do at that point.
I feel that Henrietta racial background factored into the removal of her cells for such purposes without consent. She was an easy target for cell removal because she was black. At that time in history we know that there was racism and stereotypes against blacks and the tension between the whites and blacks. Whites had better access to education. Henrietta was a single woman just working to make ends meet.
I think it was a wonderful discovery that leads to advancement in finding a Polio vaccine. Even though John Hopkins did not make any money I do feel that the Lacks family at some point should be compensated. It took them 25 years to find out the name of the person that these immortal cells came from, I felt somewhere along the years the doctors and everyone involved in the research could somehow get the family involved.
After reading the article about hairy cell leukemia, the outcome of the court case was not fair. I felt that John Moore should also benefit financially from the production of cell line. Clearly by 1983 Dr. Golden obtains enough blood serum, skin, cell and sperm from Moore to start making money. The decision of the court was unfair, because the research physician’s duty was to show Moore his financial interest in his cells, and he failed to do so. They lied to him clearly when they had him sign the consent that said that the hospital will dispose of all severed tissue or member by means of cremation.
The voices that i heard in describing the historical events did not move me although they were very interesting. There is a lot of speakers and its hard to keep up with everything being said. The way the cancers cells kept growing and growing was very mysterious.
There is controversy over the ownership of the cells. Henrietta Lacks is the official owner and Guy should have never handed out these cells like they were his own. If anyone should have gotten these cells i believe it should have been her family.
i believe it was not appropriate to take cells from the biopsy for personal research without consent. If they would have asked for permission in the first place they might have agreed.
Having the lab assistant go to the morgue and retrieve more cells from her corpse without any familys consent is the worst part. Imagine how the family feels when finding this information out. It’s as if her body wasn’t worth anything. showing great disrespect for for Henrietta Lacks.
i believe Henrietta Lacks economical status did factor into the removal of her cells with out consent. Its surprising that she made the discovery that something was wrong with her by herself. In her own bathtub at her house. I believe at the time she didn’t even see a doctor regularly or at all.
Henrietta’s racial background as well i believe factored into the removal of her cells with out consent. She was African American in the 1950’s when poverty was occurring. I believe that is why the doctor thought it was alright to just experiment with her cells with out asking. Not only did he just experiment but he sent them all over the world.
It is said that Henrietta is immortal because her cells were freely passed along all over the world. i believe they didn’t let Henrietta Lacks rest in peace. Her cells were passed around the world and even to space as mention in the podcast. i believe that the Lacks family deserves some type of pay back. John’s Hopkins did not make any money but it aided greatly to the fields of science and medicine. I don’t think the Lacks family would want any money because no matter how much money they could not change with what they did to Henrietta’s cells.
After reading the article about hairy cell leukimia, i believe that it was unfair that doctor David Gold made money from the cells that came from Moore’s biopsy. I believe David Gold took advantage of Moore. Moore did although sign a document stating that Gold could dispose of any severed tissue. If Moore knew how much money Gold would be making off it i believe he wouldnt have agreed. In court doctor David Gold wasnt given any great punishment but i believe Moore should have recieved the money.
Yesin Kowshik
Professor Dr Seto
May 4, 2012
Biology 7900
In my opinion, this was a very interesting research project. Taking a cell from an individual and keeping it alive this long, and leading to advancements in finding a Polio vaccine is amazing. The voices heard in the podcast makes the entire thing seem like a joke.
As a legal studies major, I am always told about the importance of ethics. I personally believe that ethics is important in any field you practice in, whether you are in the legal field or the medical field. Having been sent to the corpse to obtain more cells without any type of permission is totally unethical. Likewise, taking cells from a biopsy for personal research without consent is similarly unethical.
I believe that Henrietta’s social status as a woman, at the time, and her racial background contributed to the easy taking of the cells from her body without consent. If you were a woman during Henrietta’s time, you had it bad enough, but when you take her race into account, it put her more lower in social status. This allowed the cells to be taken from her without proper consent.
It is true that John’s Hopkin’s research did not make any money. However, this is not excuse to not have given the Henrietta’s family a stipend. This is something I strongly disagree with. Even though Hopkin’s aided greatly to the fields of Science and Medicine, he would have received much funding to aid in his research. Some of this money should have gone to the family just as a show of gratitude. Additionally, he gained greatly in fame and popularity within the scientific community. Some of his regards should have gone to the family.
Moore v. Regents of the University of California is a perfect example of the issue of property rights in one’s own body parts. I believe that it is fair for an individual to receive stipends for their own body parts, however the “California Supreme Court ruled that Moore had no right to any share of the profits realized from the commercialization of anything developed from his discarded body parts.” In this case the body parts were discarded, therefore, the rights were given up. This case is different from the Henrietta’s situation. Henrietta’s was alive and never gave up any of her body parts.
Please note that this is not a late posting. I posted this on the wrong site. I apologize.
Claudia Franco
Bio1101-7900
The voices from the podcast really moves me. It is incredible to know how cells from a death person has been alive that long. Hearing the four people narrating the story of Henrietta Lacks a young African-American women who found out her own cancer tumor makes me feel the sadness of her family. However, Dr. Howard Jones a 99 years old man which appears to be in his 40’s was the first doctor who see Ms. Henrietta Lacks after she founds out her tumor. In the podcast George Gey, Gury (Lacks Cousin), and her daughter narrates this sad story, the music sung by her cousin made it feels more vivid.
I believe that the only people who can ownership Lack’s cells is her family. They were they only ones who can decided whether or not doctors can use Lack’s cells in order to do experiments or not.
However, I believe that it was unappropriated and unethical to remove cells from a death person without any consent of the family. Therefore, this unethical thing helps to discovered a new vaccine (Polio vaccine), and also other drugs for other diseases. I was terrified when they mentioned about how Mary the lab assistant when to the morgue and extract more cells from Lack’s corpse. If they doctors were more ethical, they could even find more cures to diseases using Lacks’s cell instead extracting them without any permission of the family.
Also, I believe that Henrietta Lack’s racial background should not be a excuse for what the doctors did with her cells. In this case the doctors should inform the family about what was happening to Lack’s cells. However, for Henrietta being an African American during the 1950’s were there were a lot of discrimination among Black Americans, I believe that George Guy thought that it was fine to used Lack’s cell without any consent of the family, and use them as an experiments.
Because John’s Hopkins did not make any money and aided greatly to the fields of Science and Medicine, this is not an excuse for the Lack’s family to don’t even received any affection or gratitude from Hopkins. By using Lack’s cells (HeLa cells), John’s Hopkins should at least show some gratitude to Henrietta’s family for the great discoveries that the doctor did with her cells. This cell has been gotten all over the world, and have been used for great discoveries such as the Polio vaccine. Hopkins did not get any money , but at least he is well known is the medical field because for the experiment that he did.
According to the article “Hairy cell leukemia”. I believe that what Dr. David W. Golde did to John Moore cell was inadequate. If Moore knew how much money Dr. Golde would be making with his cells; I believe that he wouldn’t agree with it. In this case, the University of California and David Golde received money from the sale of the cells derived from this biopsy which I believe it is terrible what doctors do ignoring the ethics of their jobs. However, this case is totally different from Henrietta Lack’s because she didn’t gave any consent to the doctor in other to use her cells an a experiment; therefore John Moore gave some consent to the doctor in order to use some cell of his body. Furthermore, the Dr Golde didn’t respect Moore’s words and used part of his bodily tissues and fluids without disclosed this to Moore.