Ethical Issues Surrounding the Use of Henrietta Lacks' Cells

This paper examines the ethical issues surrounding the extraction and use of Henrietta Lacks' cells (HeLa cells) without her informed consent. The essay explores the historical context, scientific advancements, and social implications of this case, drawing heavily on Rebecca Skloot's "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks." Key ethical concerns include the lack of consent, financial benefits derived from the cells that did not benefit her family, and the broader impact on research ethics and patient rights. The paper discusses the cells' significance in medical research, including the development of the polio vaccine and advancements in cancer research, while also addressing the emotional and psychological impact on Lacks' family. The analysis covers the ethical responsibilities of healthcare professionals, the importance of informed consent, and the need for fair compensation and recognition for individuals whose cells are used in research. The discussion also touches on the spiritual and social aspects, highlighting the need to balance scientific progress with respect for human dignity and ethical principles.

Running head: ETHICAL ISSUES IN HENRIETTA LACKS CELLS
ETHICAL ISSUES IN HENRIETTA LACKS CELLS
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1ETHICAL ISSUES IN HENRIETTA LACKS CELLS
Rebecca Skloot in the documentation entitled The Immortal life of Henrietta Lacks
sheds light on the incident of the extraction of a certain type of cells from the body of Henrietta
Lacks without her consent or knowledge on the matter. The documentation highlighted the
extraction of the cancer cells from the body of a poor farmer who had succumbed to the fatal
disease of cervical cancer in the year 1951. These cells have been known to have been extremely
important in the study of the medical factors that are relevant in the research on the cancer cells.
The major ethical issues that have been highlighted in this case refers to the financial fortunes
that were retrieved through the sale and the resale of these cells which did not benefit her family
in any manner (Jones 47). The following paper attempts a discussion on the issues that are
highlighted in terms of the ethical practices as have been highlighted within the usage of the cells
of Henrietta Lacks without her knowledge or consent. The paper is majorly concentrated on one
of the finest literary compositions of Rebecca Skloot, The Immortal life of Henrietta Lacks. The
paper sheds light on the educational, ethical, historical, scientific, social as well as the spiritual
aspects of the ethical practices that were undertaken in the process of obtaining the cells of
Henrietta Lacks.
The story as highlighted by Rebecca Skloot in the documentation entitled The Immortal
life of Henrietta Lacks, highlights the ethical issues that might arise in the medical fields. The
documentation highlights that there had been an extraction of the cervical cells from the body of
Henrietta Lacks. The concerned person had been known to have been suffering from the then
fatal disease of cervical cancer. The person had her cells extracted from her body without
providing a proper consent for the activity from her own end. The cells had thereafter gained a
huge popularity in the medical fields and were known as the HeLa cells among the concerned
practitioners. The cells helped the concerned researchers gain better knowledge on the medical

2ETHICAL ISSUES IN HENRIETTA LACKS CELLS
practices and the other nuances of the same (Ogbogu et al. 7). The cells proved to have been
extremely important for the developmental researches on the polio vaccination, in-vitro
fertilization as well as the gene mapping as well. The other factor that have been highlighted in
this documentation refers to the fact that the concerned person of the scenario, Henrietta Lacks or
any of her family members for that argument are observed to have been away from the limelight
altogether.
The ethical dilemma revolving round these cells are known to have an impact on the
research and educational fields as well. The cells that were extracted from the body of Henrietta
Lacks were known to have played a crucial role in the development of the research on the polio
vaccination. The cells were used in conducting the initial tests of the polio vaccination as well.
The cells were also used for the conduction of the researches that are needed in the fields of
cancer, gene mapping as well as in the field of AIDS. The statistics in this regard highlight the
fact that there are a huge number of research papers and articles that have been published with
the help of the HeLa cells and the number of these research articles have been growing ever
since (Wilson 249). The use of the HeLa cells among the medical researchers have led to the
increase in the knowledge base of the medical categories especially within the field of genetics.
The initial discoveries and the research progresses were kept concealed from the family but
however they were revealed to the family in the due course of time. The HeLa cells were
observed to have been highly helpful in the medical fields as well (Caulfield and Murdoch). The
cells were known to be capable of speedy division and replication. This refers to the speedy
production of the daughter cells in case the favorable situations are presented. However, the huge
growth rate of the cells has been known to infect the other cells as well. Thus, the rapid growth

3ETHICAL ISSUES IN HENRIETTA LACKS CELLS
of these cells might thus pose a greater challenge to the control that is generally highlighted by
the medical researchers.
The use of these HeLa cells had a greater impact on the family in terms of the social
issues that are maintained by the family of Henrietta Lacks. The daughter of Henrietta Lacks had
faced a great devastation on the knowledge of the fact that her mother’s cells were a subject of
scientific studies and experimentation at the various laboratories. This was heightened by the
increase in the matters that are related to the discussions on the cloning of genes. This led the
daughter of Henrietta Lacks to ponder of the consequences that would follow if the scientists had
used the technique of gene cloning to clone Henrietta Lacks (Harbaugh 170). The major ethical
dilemma that is highlighted in this aspect refers to the fact that the family should have been
informed before the doctors embarked on the conduction of the various experiments on this
regard. This would help in avoiding the various social issues around the use of the cells for
experiments as well as saved Deborah, the daughter of Henrietta Lacks, from the psychological
disturbances that she faced (Kapila et al. 5). The spread of the information might further lead on
to the lessening of the trauma that was faced by Elsie, the sister of Deborah. Elsie has embraced
her death at a young age of fifteen years at a mental health care facility (Skloot). These could be
avoided with the proper delivery of the needed information on the scientific researches that were
conducted on the cells that were extracted from the body of Henrietta Lacks. The other issue that
might be emphasized in this scenario refers to the financial factors and the hardships that were
endured by the family despite the huge amount of the revenues that were collected through the
sale and the resale of the cells that were extracted from Henrietta Lacks or the HeLa cells (Dry et
al.). The financial positioning as have been faced by the concerned family has been observed to
be extremely poor and could have been improved if they were provided access to a certain part

4ETHICAL ISSUES IN HENRIETTA LACKS CELLS
of the revenue that is earned through the sale and the resale of the cells that were extracted from
Henrietta Lacks. The documentation further highlights that not only did the family receive any
benefits neither did Henrietta Lacks herself receive the proper amount of medical assistance. The
HeLa cells were used for the purposes of the scientific researches but however, the person in
question did not receive the proper attention or the recognition that she should have received
(Hartnett). The medical team that had been attending to the case of Henrietta Lacks would be
morally correct in case they had been offered the concerned family with proper information or a
better amount of financial help for using the cells of Henrietta Lacks for the research purposes.
The ethical factors for the healthcare activities were also affected due to the lack of the
proper information on the part of the health care employees. The case of Henrietta Lacks
highlighted the lack of the medical practitioners in the maintenance of the Hippocratic Oath and
the proper information that should be relayed to the family of the patient as well (Goldstein 456).
The concerned case further highlights the fact that the healthcare professionals had undertaken
another disparity in this case as well. The patient, in this case Henrietta Lacks, had not been
granted the ability to decide on the issues that are related to the decision on the extraction of the
cells from her own body. The lack of the consent that should have been granted by Henrietta
Lacks play a huge role in the documentation (Wolpe and Rommelfanger 1052). The doctors
might however argue on the fact that the patient, Henrietta Lacks, would not be capable of
granting consent but however, the consent from Henrietta Lacks is a part of the moral formality
and ethical duty that should be maintained by the concerned person. The lack of the extension of
the revenues earned played no part in the betterment of the welfare of either Henrietta Lacks or
her immediate family (Hayden). This led to the conditions wherein the children of Henrietta
Lacks lacked a basic medical or healthcare insurance despite the researchers earning huge

5ETHICAL ISSUES IN HENRIETTA LACKS CELLS
amounts of revenue from the sale and the resale of the cancer cells that were extracted from
Henrietta Lacks.
The extraction of the cancer cells of Henrietta Lacks have developed a proper
understanding of the historical perspectives as well. The study of the cancer cell extracted from
Henrietta Lacks or the HeLa cells have been known to have been helpful in the matters that are
related to the advancements in the stream of biotechnology as well (Ram 899). The studies on
the cells of Henrietta Lacks or the HeLa cells have sparked the debates and the discussions on
the larger picture that has been set by the discovery of the speedy multiplication of the cells
extracted from the subject, Henrietta Lacks in this case (Cartwright-Smith et al.). The researches
further highlighted the various factors that are to be maintained within the research subjects and
the choice of the research area inclusive of the researches on the stem cells as well.
The study on the cells extracted from Henrietta Lacks also have certain implications on
the spiritual matters as well. The clergymen from a majority of the Churches have opined that
the researches have led to the deviation from the sanctity of life as needed to be undertaken by
the medical practitioners. The patient, in this case Henrietta Lacks, had not been granted the
ability to decide on the issues that are related to the decision on the extraction of the cells from
her own body (Tallacchini 875). The lack of the consent that should have been granted by
Henrietta Lacks play a huge role in the documentation. The doctors might however argue on the
fact that the patient, Henrietta Lacks, would not be capable of granting consent but however, the
consent from Henrietta Lacks is a part of the moral formality and ethical duty that should be
maintained by the concerned person. The clergymen on the other hand highlights the fact the
human body remains the property of the concerned individual even after they have embraced
their death and thus highlights the lack of the ethical practices on the part of the medical

6ETHICAL ISSUES IN HENRIETTA LACKS CELLS
practitioners and the researchers (Nisbet and Markowitz). The highlighted that the individual in
discussion, Henrietta Lacks has been a part of the society and had certain values that should have
been respected even after her death. The activity on the part of the various researchers and the
medical team had not only disrespected her social boundaries but also failed to acknowledge
those of her family and immediate children as well.
In lieu of the above discussion it might be stated that the case of cancer cell extraction
from the body of Henrietta Lacks had a plethora of ethical issues in the then society that are
equally prominent in the present days as well. The major ethical issues that have been
highlighted in this case refers to the financial fortunes that were retrieved through the sale and
the resale of these cells which did not benefit her family in any manner. The patient, in this case
Henrietta Lacks, had not been granted the ability to decide on the issues that are related to the
decision on the extraction of the cells from her own body. The lack of the consent that should
have been granted by Henrietta Lacks play a huge role in the documentation. The financial
positioning as have been faced by the concerned family has been observed to be extremely poor
and could have been improved if they were provided access to a certain part of the revenue that
is earned through the sale and the resale of the cells that were extracted from Henrietta Lacks.
Thus, it might be stated that the ethical considerations should be maintained in these scenarios in
the future.

7ETHICAL ISSUES IN HENRIETTA LACKS CELLS
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