Henrietta Lacks’ family settles lawsuit with a biotech company that used her cells without consent

By LEA SKENE and SARAH BRUMFIELD

Attorney Ben Crump, who represents the family, announced the settlement late Monday and said the terms are confidential. While most cell samples died shortly after being removed from the body, her cells survived and thrived in laboratories. They became known as the first immortalized human cell line because scientists could cultivate them indefinitely, meaning researchers anywhere could reproduce studies using identical cells.

“The exploitation of Henrietta Lacks represents the unfortunately common struggle experienced by Black people throughout history,” the complaint reads. “In the same year Mr. Lacks was self-publishing a book in the hopes of finding some help for his family, the CEO of Thermo Fisher received a compensation package of over $26 million,” the brief says.

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