Lacks, a Black woman, was suffering from cervical cancer when she was treated at Johns Hopkins Hospital in 1951. A surgeon removed cells from her cervix without her consent during a procedure and that sample enabled a doctor at the hospital to create the first human cell line which could reproduce outside the body.
The cell line, now known as HeLa cells, enabled scientists to experiment and create life saving medicine including the polio vaccine, in vitro fertilization and gene mapping as well as assisted in cancer and AIDS research.
In honoring Henrietta Lacks, WHO acknowledges the importance of confronting past scientific injustices, and advancing racial equity in health and science, Director General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a statement. It's also an opportunity to recognize women -, particularly women of color - that have made amazing but often unseen contributions to medical science. Several of Lacks' grandchildren, great-grandchildren and other family attended the award ceremony in Geneva at WHO Office in Geneva. Her 87 year-old son, Lawrence Lacks, Sr. accepted the award on her behalf. My mother's contributions, once hidden, are being rightfully honored for their global impact, Lawrence Lacks said in a statement. My mother was a pioneer in life, giving back to her community, helping other people live a better life and caring for others, he added. In death, she continues to help the world. Her legacy lives in us and we thank you for saying her name - Henrietta Lacks. Henrietta Lacks died in 1951, but her cells, removed without her consent, have been used for groundbreaking scientific research for decades Family sues biotechnical company for nonconsensual use of her cells At the time of Lacks' procedure, taking cells from people without their consent wasn't against protocols. Early this month, Lacks Family filed a lawsuit against Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. for nonconsensual enrichment from the unjust use and profiting from her tissue sample and cell line. The lawsuit alleges that Thermo Fisher Scientific is knowingly profiting from the ill-fated conduct of Johns Hopkins doctors and that its ill-gotten gains belong rightfully to Ms. It argues that the company is making a conscious choice to mass produce and sell the tissue of Henrietta Lacks, a Black woman, grandmother, and community leader, despite the corporation’s knowledge that Ms. . Lacks' tissue was taken from her without her consent by doctors at Johns Hopkins Hospital and a racist medical system. While the origin of HeLa cells was not known for years, Lacks' story became widely known in the 21st century. It was the subject of a best-selling book, The Immortal Life of Oprah Winfrey, published in 2010 and a subsequent film of the same name starring Henrietta Lacks. The US House of Representatives has recognized her annual contribution to cancer research, and John Hopkins holds an annual lecture series on her impact on medicine. The lawsuit claims that without this wide recognition there is no way that Thermo Fisher Scientific could say it didn't know the history behind its products containing HeLa cells and points to a page on the company's website that acknowledges the cells were taken with Lacks consent. According to the lawsuit, there are at least 12 products that Thermo Fisher marketed to include the HeLa cell line. Thermo Fisher Scientific generates a revenue of approximately $35 billion, according to its website. CNN has reached out to the company for comment.