The family of Henrietta Lacks has won a settlement from a biotech company accused of making millions from her cells. The Lacks' were not informed of her role in medical history until the 1970s.
They were the first human cells to continuously grow and reproduce in lab dishes, making them pivotal for modern medical research. Their longevity allowed for the creation of vaccines for polio and later Covid-19, as well as experiments in genetic mapping. While most human cells die shortly after being removed from the body, the HeLa cells have survived and thrived in laboratories.
But Lacks' family was not informed of her role in medical history until 1970s. And even then, her contributions were not widely recognised until Rebecca Skloot published her research in the 2010 bestselling book, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks.A poor tobacco farmer from southern Virginia, Lacks had lived with her husband in Turner Station, a historically Black community outside Baltimore. They were raising five children when doctors discovered a tumour in Lacks' cervix.