by Chelsea Smith
Who is HeLa?
Deborah Lacks was shocked when she found out that there were thousands, or more likely millions, of her mother’s cells alive in laboratories around the world. Before 1971, scientists in laboratories were never able to keep cells alive for extended periods of time…that was until doctors took a sample of cancer cells from a woman named Henrietta Lacks.
Henrietta Lacks, a young African-American mother of five, lived in poverty. She visited Johns Hopkins Hospital in 1951, one of the only hospitals that treated poor African-Americans, where they diagnosed her with cervical cancer. This horrible disease had few treatment options at the time. Though she was given radium treatments, she unfortunately passed away on October 4th, 1951 due to the cancer spreading throughout her body.
Henrietta Lacks in the 1940’s. Photo Credit: Lacks Family, The Henrietta Lacks Foundation
Unknown to Henrietta Lacks or any of her family members, some of her cancer cells were taken at the time of her treatment and made their way to the lab of Dr. George Gey. For years, Dr. Gey’s lab had been trying to grow human cells so they could use them to study cancer and viruses. However, most cells died shortly after they received them. But Henreitta’s cells were different; they kept growing, and you can find them growing in labs to this day. Henrietta’s cells came to be called “HeLa Cells,” and were the first immortal cell line, meaning the first cell line that was able to be grown endlessly in laboratory conditions.
A new ethical question
The acquisition and use of HeLa cells brought up many dilemmas in the area of bioethics. Although Johns Hopkins Hospital never made money off of the cells, Henrietta and her family were never made aware that the cells were taken or that they were being used in science experiments all over the country. In addition, companies eventually began to sell HeLa cells to labs, so that any lab could place an order and be able to grow HeLa cells. The Lacks family eventually sued one of these companies, Thermo Fisher Scientific, and recently this case was settled on what would have been Henrietta’s 103rd birthday.
HeLa cells, stained and imaged under a microscope. Image via Wiki Commons.
Since the 1950s when Henrietta’s cells were unknowingly acquired and used for experiments, regulations have been put into place that better protect the rights of patients. For example, informed consent laws are required for patient samples to be used in science. This means that patients must be informed and understand that they are agreeing for their sample to be used in research. Although a situation as extreme as Henrietta’s is unlikely to happen today, it is important to think about the case of HeLa cells when considering how to conduct science ethically.
The impact of HeLa cells
Despite the controversy about the ethics of how HeLa cells were obtained, they have contributed to a plethora of scientific advances. For example, one group sent HeLa cells to space to look at the effects of zero gravity on human cells, while other groups have used HeLa cells to develop vaccines for Polio and Covid-19. It is without a doubt that HeLa cells have changed the course of science and medicine forever.
