Research Paper On Henrietta Lacks
¬¬Sam Irwin
Doctor Linda Pipe-Price
English 1302
8 October 2014
HeLa: A Necessary Discovery In 1951 Henrietta Lacks was diagnosed with cervical cancer. Upon starting treatment for her condition a small sample of the tumor that grew inside her was t¬¬aken without her knowledge and against her will. When doctors asked Henrietta’s husband if they could use the sample he declined the offer. Despite his refusal, the sample was used anyways. As testing began, it was found that these cells were different from all the samples before them. This sample did not die in the petri dish like thousands of samples previously tested; they multiplied at an alarming rate. These types of studies are invaluable to medical science and allow for research that will …show more content…
A certain study “conducted by Howard Jones, Henrietta’s physician – showed that radium was safer and more effective than surgery for treating invasive cervical cancer.” (Skloot 32). Radium had been used for years to treat cancer and despite its drawbacks it had been shown that it effectively “kills cancer cells.” (Skloot 32). Because Lacks was receiving quality medical care for free, the least she could do was let them use her cells for medical tests. After all, the research hospital she was receiving treatment at “was one of the top hospitals in the country.” (Skloot 15) Henrietta might not have realized that one of the primary goals of this institution was to facilitate medical research, but the taking of samples was something that was done for the greater …show more content…
The medical research done at Johns Hopkins, especially of the uniquely resilient HeLa cells, has “enabled scientists to study cancer and other diseases…as never before” (Hopkins Medicine). Henrietta Lacks contribution was indispensable to these discoveries and I see this research as an opportunity for patients to contribute to the work that is keeping them healthy and
Doctor Linda Pipe-Price
English 1302
8 October 2014
HeLa: A Necessary Discovery In 1951 Henrietta Lacks was diagnosed with cervical cancer. Upon starting treatment for her condition a small sample of the tumor that grew inside her was t¬¬aken without her knowledge and against her will. When doctors asked Henrietta’s husband if they could use the sample he declined the offer. Despite his refusal, the sample was used anyways. As testing began, it was found that these cells were different from all the samples before them. This sample did not die in the petri dish like thousands of samples previously tested; they multiplied at an alarming rate. These types of studies are invaluable to medical science and allow for research that will …show more content…
A certain study “conducted by Howard Jones, Henrietta’s physician – showed that radium was safer and more effective than surgery for treating invasive cervical cancer.” (Skloot 32). Radium had been used for years to treat cancer and despite its drawbacks it had been shown that it effectively “kills cancer cells.” (Skloot 32). Because Lacks was receiving quality medical care for free, the least she could do was let them use her cells for medical tests. After all, the research hospital she was receiving treatment at “was one of the top hospitals in the country.” (Skloot 15) Henrietta might not have realized that one of the primary goals of this institution was to facilitate medical research, but the taking of samples was something that was done for the greater …show more content…
The medical research done at Johns Hopkins, especially of the uniquely resilient HeLa cells, has “enabled scientists to study cancer and other diseases…as never before” (Hopkins Medicine). Henrietta Lacks contribution was indispensable to these discoveries and I see this research as an opportunity for patients to contribute to the work that is keeping them healthy and