Health

Family of Henrietta Lacks Settles with Biotech Company That Used Her Cells

Published

10 months ago

August 1, 2023

Family of Henrietta Lacks Settles with Biotech Company That Used Her Cells

The family of Henrietta Lacks, the Black woman whose cancer cells were taken without consent and used to pioneer numerous medical discoveries, reached a settlement on Monday with a biotechnology company that had used the cells.

In a lawsuit filed in October 2021, descendants of Ms. Lacks, who died decades ago, accused the company, Thermo Fisher Scientific, of selling the cells and trying to secure intellectual property rights on the products the cells were used to help develop without compensating the family or seeking their permission or approval.

The terms of the settlement are confidential, lawyers for both parties said in a statement.

Thermo Fisher, a Massachusetts-based biotechnology company, and the legal team for Ms. Lacks’s family released identical statements announcing the settlement.

“The parties are pleased that they were able to find a way to resolve this matter outside of Court and will have no further comment,” the statements said.

Ms. Lacks was being treated for cervical cancer at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore in 1951 when a sample of her cells were taken without her knowledge. The cell line named for her, HeLa, became the cornerstone of many medical and scientific innovations, including vaccines for polio and the coronavirus. But Ms. Lacks died that same year, and her family did not know about her contribution to medical science for more than two decades.

On Tuesday, which would have been Ms. Lacks’s 103rd birthday, members of her family gathered at a news conference to celebrate the settlement.

A grandson, Alfred Lacks Carter Jr., said, “it could not have been a more fitting day for her to have justice and for her family to have relief.”

“It was a long fight, over 70 years, and Henrietta Lacks gets her day,” he said.

One of the family’s lawyers, Chris Ayers, suggested that similar lawsuits would follow.

“The fight against those who profit, and chose to profit, off the deeply unethical and unlawful history and origins of the HeLa cells will continue,” he said.

Ms. Lacks, a mother of five, died in October 1951. She was 31.

Eight months earlier, she had learned she had cervical cancer after being admitted to a racially segregated ward at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore. Doctors removed a sample of cells from the tumor in her cervix without her knowledge or consent and gave them to a medical researcher at Johns Hopkins University. The researcher found that her cells were the first to reproduce in a laboratory, outside the body.

Most cells die within days, but because Ms. Lacks’s cells continued to multiply, researchers and scientists could use them to do things such as test how the polio virus infects cells and causes disease.

Research using the HeLa cells has led to the development of vaccines treatments for diseases including cancer, Parkinson’s and the flu. The cells have also been used by researchers around the world and have been cited in more than 110,000 scientific publications, according to the National Institutes of Health.

Ms. Lacks’s family was not told about the world-changing discovery and did not find out about the cell line until 1973, according to “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks,” a book by Rebecca Skloot that was turned into a movie featuring Oprah Winfrey as Ms. Lacks’s daughter Deborah.

Ms. Lacks’s descendants have said they are proud of her contribution but angry about how she was treated by the medical establishment. These frustrations have been made worse with the commercialization of her cells, they said.

The family’s lawsuit against Thermo Fisher said the company had “made staggering profits by using the HeLa cell line — all while Ms. Lacks’ Estate and family haven’t seen a dime.”

“Thermo Fisher Scientific’s choice to continue selling HeLa cells in spite of the cell lines’ origin and the concrete harms it inflicts on the Lacks family can only be understood as a choice to embrace a legacy of racial injustice embedded in the U.S. research and medical systems,” the lawsuit said.

Thermo Fisher tried to dismiss the case, arguing that the lawsuit was filed after the statute of limitations had expired, The Baltimore Sun reported. Lawyers for the family said the limit should not apply because the company continued to benefit financially from the cells.

Health

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14 mins ago

May 30, 2024

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Health

First person with MS to play in the NBA shares his inspiring message: 'Make the most of it'

Published

39 mins ago

May 30, 2024

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First person with MS to play in the NBA shares his inspiring message: 'Make the most of it'

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Multiple sclerosis is a life-changing diagnosis for one million people who are affected in the U.S. — but for a professional athlete, its physical limitations can seem particularly challenging.

Chris Wright, 34, the first person with MS to play in the National Basketball Association (NBA), has been living with the disorder since his 2012 diagnosis.

For World MS Day on May 30, Wright and his neurologist, Dr. Heidi Crayton, joined Fox News Digital in an on-camera interview from Washington, D.C., to discuss how he’s come to terms with his MS and to share words of wisdom for others facing the diagnosis. (See the video at the top of this article.)

DISRUPTED SLEEP, PLUS NIGHTMARES COULD BE LINKED TO AUTOIMMUNE DISEASES, EXPERTS SAY

Wright first experienced symptoms in 2012, he said, when he noticed tingling in his right foot while warming up for an overseas basketball game in Turkey.

“As I was shooting, I felt a tingling sensation in my right hand that eventually spread throughout my entire body within a matter of a minute,” he told Fox News Digital.

Chris Wright, 34, the first person with MS to play in the NBA, has been living with the disorder since his 2012 diagnosis. (Getty Images/Chris Wright)

His coaches sent him to a doctor, who told him to take the day off.

“The next morning I woke up, and I couldn’t walk. I couldn’t stand up. I couldn’t really use my limbs,” he recalled.

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Wright returned to the doctor, this time in a wheelchair.

“They sent me to a specialist, where I was quickly diagnosed with multiple sclerosis.”

MS is a chronic disease of the central nervous system that can affect movement, vision, speech and other functions.

After going through several other doctors, Wright found Dr. Crayton, a board-certified neurologist who practices at the Multiple Sclerosis Center of Greater Washington.

Chris Wright of Bertram Derthona Basket Tortona in action during the LBA Lega Basket Series A Playoffs Semi-Final Game 3 match between Bertram Derthona Basket Tortona and Virtus Segafredo Bologna PalaEnergica Paolo Ferraris on May 31, 2022, in Casale Monferrato, Italy. (Getty Images)

“What led me to her was her confidence and her ability to simplify what it meant to have MS and to make it manageable for me. [She] helped me understand that I could still go on with my career and my life in a way that I wanted to,” he said.

Crayton noted that the patient-doctor relationship is a “marathon, not a sprint.”

She told Fox News Digital, “It’s really important to find a doctor they can trust, who they can communicate with, who they can partner with to make decisions.”

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“You need a team of people who support you, love you and accept you.”

Less than a year after his diagnosis, Wright became the first person with MS to play in the NBA when he signed with the Dallas Mavericks.

“MS impacted my career tremendously, because there was nobody before me,” Wright told Fox News Digital.

“You need a team of people who support you, love you and accept you.”

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“I had NBA offers that were retracted because of the possibility of me having medical conditions and just being in uncharted territory — but I kept working and overcame it.”

BREAKTHROUGH FOR MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS SUFFERERS MAY INVOLVE HELPFUL HORMONE: ‘PATIENTS SHOULD REMAIN OPTIMISTIC’

Wright, a husband and father of three, is no longer playing basketball these days, but he is feeling healthy and enjoying life, he said.

“Living with MS, it looks good, it feels good — I feel great,” he said.

“I try to stay active. I try to stay healthy. I try to stay moving. And I’ve been able to keep myself healthy and continue to be a father and live my life the way I want to live.”

‘Badge of honor’

For all those facing a new diagnosis, Wright encouraged seeking out resources from people who have “walked these halls” before.

“There are people who understand what you’re going through, and it’s important to hear other stories and get a foundational knowledge of what your life will look like moving forward.”

After going through several other doctors, Wright found Dr. Crayton, pictured here, a board-certified neurologist who practices at the Multiple Sclerosis Center of Greater Washington. (Dr. Heidi Crayton)

Wright is involved with Express4MS, a campaign that encourages people with MS to express themselves, share their stories and discuss treatment options with their doctors.

“It’s just something you can put in your toolbox to find information, inspiration and motivation to live every day in a positive way,” Wright said.

“Walk with pride, and know that you’re going to be OK.”

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“I would say to people: Stay with it, go through those tough times, figure out what works for you,” he said.

“Figure out how you can be successful at whatever it is you do.”

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Wright urges MS patients to look at the disease not as a hindrance, but as a “badge of honor.”

He said, “Walk with pride, and know that you’re going to be OK.”

Clayton advises her MS patients to “treat your body like a temple.”

Chris Wright of Bertram Derthona Basket Tortona in action during the LBA Lega Basket Serie A Playoffs Semi-Final Game 3 match between Bertram Derthona Basket Tortona and Virtus Segafredo Bologna PalaEnergica Paolo Ferraris on May 31, 2022, in Casale Monferrato, Italy. (Getty Images)

“It will pay you back in spades if you can invest in your health — eat well, exercise, sleep,” she said.

While people with MS will always have bad days, Wright is focused on maintaining a positive outlook.

“As long as you’re above ground, you have an opportunity to make the most of it,” he said.

“Every action has an equal and opposite reaction — so whatever you put out there is the energy that’s going to come back.”

For more Health articles, visit www.foxnews.com/health.

Health

Early stroke symptoms, plus allergy prevention and foods that promote sleep

Published

8 hours ago

May 30, 2024

Press Room

Early stroke symptoms, plus allergy prevention and foods that promote sleep

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EVERY SECOND COUNTS – Jenna Gibson was just 39 when a stroke nearly killed her. Here, she shares her story to help raise awareness among young women. Continue reading…

‘PUBLIC HEALTH CONCERN’ – ADHD now affects 1 in 9 kids in the U.S., a new report reveals. Mental health experts discuss reasons for the spike and how families can help. Continue reading…

EAT WELL, SLEEP WELL – Want a better night’s sleep? Researchers suggest eating more of these types of foods. Continue reading…

Consuming more fruits and veggies helps to support the right amount of sleep, a new study has found. (iStock)

SOMETHING FISHY? – A certain supplement has been linked to an increased risk of cardiovascular events for some people. Researchers and doctors weigh in. Continue reading…

HELP FOR VETS – The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs is bringing mobile medical care to homeless vets. Patients share how the initiative is changing their lives for the better. Continue reading…

RISK REDUCTION – Feeding peanut butter to babies — starting during infancy and continuing until age 5 — has been shown effective in reducing allergies into adolescence. Continue reading…

Feeding peanut butter to babies has shown to be effective in reducing allergies into adolescence, according to a new study. (iStock)

‘HUGE STIGMA’ – For World Schizophrenia Day, a mental health expert debunks some of the most common myths surrounding the disorder. Continue reading…

ILL-EQUIPPED – Half of American adults don’t think they can help in a medical crisis, a new poll reveals. Continue reading…

EYE OPENER – Several nurses share what they wish they’d known before entering the profession. Continue reading…

Left to right, Karie Ryan, Michele Acito, Katelynn Blackburn and Lisbeth Votruba shared insights into the nursing profession with Fox News Digital. Two other nurses shared thoughts as well. (iStock/Karie Ryan/Michele Acito/Katelynn Blackburn/Lisbeth Votruba)