Why Is Henrietta Lacks Unethical

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How would you feel if you were able to save millions of lives and not be credited for it in the slightest. Furious, irritated, sad or even apoplectic, this is what happened to to family of the late Henrietta Lacks. Henrietta Lacks was an African American woman whose cancer cells were the source of the HeLa cell line, one of the most important cell lines in medical research ever discovered. With the major impact that Henrietta Lacks had on the medical community, her and her family received absolutely nothing in compensation. Henrietta Lacks's cells were the first to be observed that could be divided multiple times without dying, which is why they became known as "immortal." which is what gives the book about her the title the book has. When discussing Henrietta Lacks, there are multiple topics but the main topics are about tissue rights, compensation and the medical ethics. …show more content…

“Medical ethics is a system of moral principles that apply values and judgments to the practice of clinical medicine and in scientific research. ... These values include the respect for autonomy, nonmaleficence, beneficence, and justice.” The key-word that stands out to me in that definition is respect, I believe that it is safe to say that the doctors at john hopkins university had little to no respect for mrs Lacks lacks in order to take her cells without her consent. Many people are able to argue that considering the fact that John Hopkins hospital in baltimore maryland is a public hospital then henrietta Lacks did not really have much right in determining what her cells may be used for or even if they could be used at all. Though this is a valid argument, it still does not deny the fact that the doctors at john hopkins hospital took her cells and made a profit with them and were able to save millions of lives and not give her anything public recognition nor a penny to neither her nor her

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