In an article I found called Henrietta Lacks' 'Immortal Cells' there is talk about a book that recently came out uncovering the mystery behind Henrietta Lacks' "immortal cells". I had not heard of any of this before until I read the article, but Lacks was a black, poor, tobacco farmer from southern Virginia who had a huge impact on the world of medicine. When she was 30 years old she was diagnosed with cervical cancer. A doctor from John Hopkins removed part of her tumor without telling her and sent it to scientists.
Those scientists had been trying to grow tissue for years, and as they were using Lacks' cells they never seemed to die for reasons they could not figure out. These cells were the first immortal cells to be grown in a culture, helped create a vaccine for polio, were brought into space to see how cells would act with zero gravity, and helped scientists with many other scientific landmarks.
However, the writer of this novel wanted to know more about Lacks and her family, and if they had any idea that a part of her was still alive doing these amazing things. There were several attempts to keep the actual name for which the cells initials came from (HeLa) a secret. However, eventually the truth got out. The doctors wanted to find out more about these cells and wanted to use DNA from her husband and daughter. However, this came to a shock especially to her daughter who was just an infant when Henrietta died and couldn't believe a part of her was still alive.
Is it right, even with all of the great things they did, that the doctor could use her cells without her or her family knowing?
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