Controversy Behind HeLa Cells
Background: In 1951 an African-American, Virginia native 31 year old mother of five, went to Johns Hopkins Hospital to get a medical check up of what she suspected to be cancer, she was sadly correct in her assumption of cancer. The doctor at Johns Hopkins Hospital told this mother of five she had cervical cancer. While at this cancer checkup, the doctor performed a slandered biopsy and removed many cancerous cervical cells, without her consent. Now under regular bases no consent isn't an issue, but these unconsented cells removed during the biopsy would become the most famous and controversial cells known, theses cells where placed in a petri dish, and fed cultures, theses cells became the first cells to live and immortal life, these cells belonged to Henrietta Lacks who sadly died from the cervical cancer, eight months after the cancer biopsy.
The upside of the use of HeLa CellsRebecca Scloot explains in her book, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks "her cells were part of the research into the genes that caused cancer and those that suppressed it; they helped develop drugs for treating herpes, leukemia, influenza, hemophilia and Parkinson disease: and they've been used to study lactose digestion, sexually transmitted diseases, appendicitis, human longevity, mosquito mating, and negative cellular effect of working on sewers."(Pg. 4). All of these medical advancements have improved the living slandered for people, and consented or not, without Henrietta Lacks's cells none of these advancements would have been made. Rebecca Scloot continues, and quotes her professor, ""HeLa cells were one of the most important things that happened to medicine in the last hundred years." Defler said." (Pg. 4). Defler, Rebecca Scloot's professor, told his entire biology class that in the last one-hundred years the most important thing to enter the world of medicine was Henrietta Lacks's immortal cells.
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Is using HeLa cells ethical, when they where gathered without prior knowledge and consent?Do The Ends Justify The Means? |
The downside of the use of HeLa CellsDuring a press conference, directer of the National Institute of Health admits, "In 20 years at (NIH), I can't recall a specific circumstance more changed with scientific, societal, and ethical challenger then this one," (Wynne Parry's article "Controversial 'HeLa' Cells: Use Restricted Under New Plan.). A man who deals with controversy daily can't recall any other case that has had more controversy then that of the HeLa cell case. Whynne Parry continues, "Lacks's cancer killed her not long after the biopsy, but the problems didn't end. Her family remained unaware of her immortal cells until 20 years later, when scientists began using her children in research without there knowledge, Skloot reported. Later, their medical records were released and published without consent." So not only did Henrietta Lacks not give consent for the removal, and research of her cells, after she had died her children were questioned and researched, without their consent either.
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My Side
Over all, the use of Henrietta Lacks's cells is ethical because, there has been so many great things from the use of her cells, like the study in treating influenza, and the treatment of herpes, or even the treatment of hemophilia, yes there are unethical circumstances in the use of Henrietta's cells, like the aquieration of the cells, or how her family never knew about her immortal cells, or the true reason of why they where being questioned, observed, or tested. Even though there has been many issues with Henrietta Lacks's cell research, over all it is ethical to use her cells for research.