Title: Agreement Reached between Family of Henrietta Lacks and Biotech Company Over Unauthorized Use of “Immortal Cells”
Byline: [Author’s Name]
Date: [Current Date]
A decades-long legal battle has finally come to an end as the family of Henrietta Lacks, the African-American woman whose “immortal cells” revolutionized modern medicine, reached an agreement with Thermo Fisher, the biotech company that used her genetic material without her consent. Lawyers representing the Lacks family announced the settlement, although the specific terms of the agreement remain undisclosed.
“The parties are satisfied that they have found a way to resolve this matter out of court,” stated Ben Crump and Chris Seeger, lawyers for the Lacks family. The agreement was reached nearly two years after a lawsuit was filed in Maryland, where the unauthorized use of Lacks’ cells occurred, as reported by the AFP news agency.
Henrietta Lacks passed away at the age of 31 in 1951 due to cervical cancer. During attempts to treat her, cells were taken from her tumor without her knowledge and sent to a researcher. These cells, renamed as HeLa cells, were found to possess extraordinary characteristics – they could be grown outside the human body and infinitely multiplied, marking a breakthrough in medical research. Pharmaceutical companies around the world benefited from this discovery, using the cells to develop vaccines, cancer treatments, and cloning techniques.
The Lacks family did not discover the unauthorized use of their relative’s cells until the 1970s. It was only after the publication of Rebecca Skloot’s 2010 bestseller, “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks,” that the family fully grasped the extent of this medical advancement and the commercial implications it carried. In 2021, Kimberly Lacks, Henrietta’s granddaughter, accused Thermo Fisher Scientific of profiting from the commercialization of the cells, stating, “They have been using their cells for 70 years, and the Lacks family received nothing in exchange for this robbery.”
Although the settlement signifies a resolution, the details of the agreement have not been disclosed to the public. A spokesperson for Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc confirmed the agreement but did not provide further comments regarding the matter.
On what would have been Henrietta Lacks’ 103rd birthday, this agreement represents an important step towards acknowledging the impact of her contributions to medical science and ensuring that her family’s rights are respected.