Their Story Their Voice
Their Story Their Voice
The Immortal Cells of Henrietta Lacks. Her Unintended Gift to Humaniity
***Trigger warning - episode discuss topics relating to cancer and medical ethics, which some listeners may find distressing***
In this episode, I try to explore the remarkable story behind HeLa cells, the first “immortal” human cell line that revolutionised modern science. Originally taken from Henrietta Lacks—a young African American mother of five—without her knowledge or consent in 1951, these cells paved the way for breakthroughs in cancer research, the polio vaccine, gene mapping, and more. Yet, the story of HeLa is also deeply intertwined with ethical questions: How were these cells obtained, and who has benefitted from their widespread use?
Please note transcription accuracy may vary.
Sources:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pgB1IqGp8BE
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/video/detail/amzn1.dv.gti.b2ae44fd-319d-c29b-47b6-a7ab103a4435?ref_=imdbref_tt_wbr_ovf__pvt_aiv&tag=imdbtag_tt_wbr_ovf__pvt_aiv-21
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Immortal-Life-Henrietta-Lacks/dp/B004M4CT4K/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3DTDZLRB61AWU&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.Gbi0Tt2uaH0pGN7K13kVC-7cXvLKKJPiQV6yulEevWUSkXqyc69shgqu9wJHvaSRfXASPmRkSJSPFl4PEbDtzG7kN8SnsEgB-BXex8qj3Qnr3w_Ihpjn65v9BrmCnUhcQ84BzxPW-_Ilg9flznaPNeOvW-DMJhmnpm91qZW9AKYgiXtcYMVlx37DmBnkTRGxlAi1XQ39unzUvWKoFz3ajECBoT66cUOLrITEtsqi2i7h0Hev6MCcbg9RZAyl8hUg.Mle9duqIu4sLRVwtzTDtZOEPWqOvUfh05jc5BbQpbmE&dib_tag=se&keywords=the+immortal+life+of+henrietta+lacks&nsdOptOutParam=true&qid=1736298952&s=instant-video&sprefix=the+immortal+li%2Cinstant-video%2C74&sr=1-1-catcorr
Music by:
(Neffex - A year ago)
(Neffex - dont want to let myself go)
Hi, hi, hi. Welcome to another episode. I hope you're all having a good 2025. We're only eight days in, so we'll just see how we get on. But it's early days, so let's just keep going. And I'm not sure if I mentioned this last time, on the days where you feel more dark than light, I really hope that you at least try and find the light somewhere, even if it's in the smallest thing. Before I start, please be aware that this episode discusses topics relating to cancer and medical ethics, which some listeners may find distressing. Listener discretion is advised. What if your greatest contribution to humanity was made without your knowledge or consent? In this episode, I'm going to explore the story of Henrietta Lacks, a woman who sells revolutionized art. medicine, but whose name was forgotten for decades. Henrietta was born in 1920 in rural Virginia. She would go on to marry David Day and they would have five children together. This journey belongs not only to her, but also to her children and her family, whose lives were affected by the scientific. and medical communities exploitation of Henrietta. Why was she important and what is her legacy? According to Roberta Skloot, author of The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, No one knows how many of Henrietta's cells are still alive today. One scientist estimated that they could weigh more than 50 million metric tons whilst another said they could rub around the earth at least three times. So basically, That's a lot. Under a microscope, these cells appear as small structures made of water, proteins and genetic material. Basically, the blueprint of life. In 1951, Henrietta would walk into the coloured wing of John Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, complaining of a knot in her womb. Dr. Howard Jones, a gynaecologist, would discover a malignant tumor on her cervix. Malignant cells grow uncontrollably and they can invade nearby tissue. He described it as the size of a nickel. I had to actually Google because I do not know how big a nickel is. I think it's really small. I think it's really, really small. However, when I Googled, apparently it's similar to a UK 5p coin. That's the best that I'm going to be able to do. A biopsy would confirm she had stage 1 cervical cancer. The National Cancer Institute reports that almost all cervical cancer cases are caused by HPV. Routine screening, which PAP or HPV tests can detect pre cancerous cells early. I'm really hoping for anyone listening to this who is a woman, or who identifies as a woman knows this. I'm actually including men. I feel like this is just something that people should know. Communities do not have access to these screenings. George Papalikkanau would discover PAP tests. In 1920, however, it did not gain recognition until the 1950s when it became more widely adopted. However, Many women, particularly African American women, like Henrietta, did not have access to regular screenings due to systematic healthcare disparities. Oh my god, I can't say this word. So, the word I'm trying to say is due to systematic healthcare disparities. I feel like we know what I'm trying to say. I'm not sure if I said it correctly or not. As a result, she did not receive a pap smear, which might have detected her cancer at an earlier stage, a stage where it was more treatable. Even today, there are still countries where not everyone is offered regular screenings. Just because, just because I can and also just because I feel like you're probably used to it. Just to name a few of these countries. We have China, we have Japan, and one that I found relatively surprising was Spain. During Henrietta's biopsy, a sample was taken without her knowledge or consent, and her cells were sent to Dr George Gey's laboratory. In the same hospital, Gey was a cell biologist, and he was determined to advance medical research. To be fair, because I do want to be fair, I don't want to paint anyone as a villain. The villain will come later, but the villain's not actually there yet. He wasn't motivated by financial gain, but actually, He was motivated by the vision of improving public health during her biopsy, a sample of Henrietta's tumour was taken without her consent or her knowledge. The lab maintain sterile conditions, which was critical to cell culture success. Mary Kubik, a lab assistant, was responsible for processing the samples. She meticulously followed sterile protocols and noticed something remarkable. Henrietta's cells did not die like other cells. Instead, they doubled every 20 to 24 hours. It hadn't been seen before. Mary would go on to label the samples Henrietta's is cells were labeled HeLa. cells They would go on to become the first immortal human cell line capable of reproducing indefinitely under the right conditions. Why do we care? I'm going to definitely get on to why we care because we really do care. Henrietta would sadly die eight months later, never knowing her cells played a crucial role in developing the polio vaccine. cancer treatments, advancements in IVF. They continue to be used in medical studies worldwide. She would never know she would go on to save around 10 million people when she walked into John Hopkins Hospital in 1951. I'm not justifying anything, but I just do want to add it wasn't the world we live in now. It, it wasn't the world where we lived to see like him or not like him. I'm just going to throw it in the world where America got to see a black man as a president. That was a wow moment. Regardless of whether you were for him, Obama, obviously, or you weren't for him. I think even for me over here in the United Kingdom, it was like, Oh, that's such a wow moment. This wasn't that time. So for decades, Henrietta's name remained hidden behind the label HeLa. Henrietta's story highlights the importance of informed consent. In the 1950s, patient consent for tissue samples, it just wasn't standard practice, rightly or wrongly. Obviously, wrongly, it just wasn't. Her story would go on to raise questions about fairness, respect, and the ethical obligations of the medical community. Her daughter, Deborah, would say, I always have thought it was strange. If our mother's cells done so much for medicine, how come her family can't afford to see no doctors? Don't make sense. People got rich off my mother without us even knowing about them taking her cells. Now we don't get a dime. Henrietta's family have gone on to file several lawsuits, rightly so, against the big pharmaceutical companies. As recently as 2024, her family would file a lawsuit against Novartis Pharmaceutical Corporation, and another one, am I going to be able to say it? Amvitris Incorporated, alleging unauthorized use of HeLa cells for profit. These lawsuits highlight ongoing concerns about the exploitation of Henrietta's cells without her family's consent. Just to be clear, they're not disputing using her Cells. But why should Big Pharma be profiting without acknowledging those in charge of her estate? And that's the villain. Usually I would say do better, but what's the point? Because they won't. Their main goal will always be financial. In today's healthcare, these disparities still exist. Big pharma is still about profit as opposed to helping people. And this isn't a. Black, Asian, white thing. It's people in general. Black women still continue, as recently as 2024, to face higher mortality rates in areas like maternal health and cervical cancer. Henrietta story It's not just history, it's a reminder of the ongoing need for healthcare, equality and equity. Henrietta Lack's legacy is testament to the profound impact one individual can have on science and humanity. her cells have paved the way for countless medical breakthroughs. and that is such an act of kindness. However, on the flip side of that, her story also serves as a reminder of the ethical responsibilities inherent in medical research. I like to think maybe her legacy is one of resilience and transformation and the truth is her cells changed the world. I definitely read somewhere, I can't remember where, but I definitely did. I'm not making this up. Something to do with her cells even going to space or something to do with NASA. I'm not making it up. That actually is true. Her cells have changed the world. But her story challenges us to ensure that kindness, justice and respect are at the heart of future scientific achievements. And that's it. That's it for this episode. I, I was really nervous about doing this one. I recorded it four times. This is the fifth time and I figure there was no way that I was going to be able to, I didn't think I was ever going to be able to do her justice I'm not sure I did do her justice, but I figure the more people refer to the lady as opposed to her cells, and I get it, they have done such amazing, amazing things and no one can ever dispute that, but behind those cells was a person who had a family who she loved Henrietta's story was, it was important for me to share because I didn't know. I spoke to a few people when I mentioned it who had heard of her, but equally I spoke to some who hadn't. So I feel like the more people who just share her name, and what her cells have gone on to do, that's, that's honouring her. It's honouring her and it's honouring her legacy. Most of the information that I got was from Rebecca Skloot book, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks. I just want to add, Rebecca Skloot would go on to create a foundation called the Henrietta Lacks Foundation and the aim of the foundation was to help those from disadvantaged communities in whatever way. She just wanted to, she wanted to give back. I'm going to put a link so you can actually see what she looks like on the show notes. I'm also going to put a link to the book. There was a film that was done about Henrietta and the film is based on Rebecca's book. The book was amazing. Film came out in 2017, I am going to put it in the show notes If you're in the United Kingdom, I think the only place you can find it is on Amazon. I haven't watched it, but now I will. In America. I believe, don't know if I'm making this up, it might be more readily available to you. thank you so so much for listening. I hope you have a good rest of the week and I will be back next week. I feel like I said this last week, but I think this is the last of, for now, for a while, this is the last of anything related to science. And as always. Be kind to others, but most importantly, be kind to yourself. and that's it. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Bye bye bye.
