The Secret Lives of Cells

The author here, Laura Wright, has written an article review of the book, “The Immortal Cells of Henrietta Lacks.” In her review, it is easy to discern that the author understands aspects of research but she definitely questions the ethics of the researchers involved. This is evident in the descriptive used for the researchers when she says, “Skloot’s telling of this aspect of modern medicine reads like good fiction, rich with characters of mixed stripes: insensitive jerks, ignorant brainiacs; some blindly altruistic to the point of naïveté, others who fully understood that they were deceiving patients about the true value of their cast-off tissues.” (Wright, 2010). The author closes her review with “As we hurtle toward the day when a visit to the doctor begins with a thorough DNA exam, the question of what exactly we’ll leave for the taking when we exit remains wide open.” (Wright, 2010). These comments are indicators of the author’s viewpoint on the matter.
I always find myself with ambivalent feelings and viewpoints in terms of the science of medicine and how discovery and advances are made, especially when there are people of color involved. Historically, African Americans have been the “guinea pig” group for all types of trials and testing. I believe this stems from early societal structure and the determination to prove that African Americans were the most inferior group of human beings. I also believe in research and the science of medicine for the sake of medical advancements and the phenomenal discoveries. I think when researchers are working diligently on; publishing, discovering and other things to advance their careers, sometimes their decisions and actions lack integrity and ethics. Of course, this was prior to the creation of any Institutional Review Board, but the fact remains there are still some trials and testing that could stand a greater scrutiny.
I understand that there are human beings behind every biological sample used in the laboratory. So much of science today revolves around using human biological tissue of some kind. For scientists, cells are often just like tubes or fruit flies, they’re just inanimate tools that are always there in the lab. The people behind those samples often have their own thoughts and feelings about what should happen to their tissues, but they’re usually left out of the equation. So much of medicine today depends on tissue culture. HIV tests, many basic drugs, all of our vaccines, we would have none of that if it wasn’t for scientists collecting cells from people and growing them. And the need for these cells is going to get greater, not less. What is very true about science is that there are human beings behind it and sometimes even with the best of intentions things go wrong. Instead of saying we don’t want that to happen, we just need to look at how it can happen in a way that EVERYONE is okay with.
What I learned is that Henrietta’s cells were the first immortal human cells ever grown in culture and completely changed the course of medical science. They were essential to developing the polio vaccine. They went up in the first space missions to see what would happen to cells in zero gravity. Many scientific landmarks since then have used her cells, including cloning, gene mapping and in vitro fertilization and in 1951, doctors weren’t required to tell you when they used your cells for research nor to give you a share of any of the profits; they still aren’t today. (Wright, 2010)

Reference

Wright, L. (2010, August 19). The secret lives of cells. The responsibility project, Retrieved from http://responsibility-project.libertymutual.com/articles/the-secret-life-of-cells