Lacks’ cervical cells were taken without her consent, but they enabled significant advances in medical science. The cells, sometimes termed “HeLa” cells, were the first “immortal” human cells to be grown in a laboratory. Unlike regular cells, they can divide and multiply indefinitely, providing a consistent research base for scientists.
The family of Henrietta Lacks, an African-American woman whose cervical cells were harvested in 1951 without her knowledge or consent, has reached a settlement with Switzerland-based Novartis.
According to the BBC, Novartis, a biotech company, was accused of profiting from Lacks’ cells.
Lacks’ cervical cells were taken without her consent, but they enabled significant advances in medical science. The cells, sometimes termed “HeLa” cells, were the first “immortal” human cells to be grown in a laboratory. Unlike regular cells, they can divide and multiply indefinitely, providing a consistent research base for scientists.
Lacks, who was 31 years old in 1951, began experiencing pain in and around her abdomen. She was examined at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Maryland, where doctors discovered a mass inside her cervix. Without asking for permission, gynecologists sent a sample of the mass for medical research before beginning treatment. Lacks’s “immortal” cells were later sent to laboratories around the world, where they continue to be used for research purposes.
However, the BBC notes that the same properties that made Lacks’s cells seemingly miraculous also proved lethal. Shortly after her diagnosis, Lacks passed away and was buried in an unmarked grave.
The Lacks family was only informed of the cell line’s existence in 1975. Neither Henrietta nor her descendants ever received any form of direct compensation.
Three years ago, though, the family settled with Massachusetts-based Thermo Fischer Scientific Inc. for an undisclosed sum. The Novartis settlement is the second achieved by the family.
“Members of the family of Henrietta Lacks and Novartis are pleased they were able to find a way to resolve this matter filed by Henrietta Lacks’s estate outside of court,” the Lacks family said in a joint statement with Novartis. “The terms of the agreement are confidential.”
Benjamin Crump, an attorney for the family, said that his clients are pleased with the outcome.
“For the family and her grandchildren, this is certainly justice because people said they would never realize any benefit or compensation from her immortal HeLa cells, even though these pharmaceutical companies were profiting billions and billions of dollars,” Crump said.
The settlement, Crump said, will provide “some measure of justice, to offer respect and dignity to the life that was taken.”
Sources
Henrietta Lacks: Family of woman whose cells were ‘stolen’ settles second lawsuit
Henrietta Lacks’s Family Settles Suit With Novartis Over Use of Her Cells
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