5 ms·

Henrietta Lacks' Lasting Impact Detailed in New Portrait

73 points by Balgair 9y ago

gowld 9y ago
The OP is a light, short article that thoroughly justifies the title. Not sure why the HN title is different, editorialized, and less informative than the original article.
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
- dang 9y ago
  We changed the title from "The new Henrietta Lacks' portrait is really good". Submitters: please follow the HN guidelines, which ask: "please use the original title, unless it is misleading or linkbait" and "Don't editorialize." https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html
  - Balgair 9y ago
    my bad!
scott_s 9y ago
Radio Lab did a great episode on Henrietta Lacks in 2010: https://www.wnycstudios.org/story/91716-henriettas-tumor/ https://www.wnycstudios.org/story/91716-henriettas-tumor/
deleted 9y ago
[deleted]
iopuy 9y ago
If anyone is curious about her life and contributions to science, I'd pick up a copy of The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks (https://amzn.to/2rLLIHU https://amzn.to/2rLLIHU). It touches on some pretty heavy sociological issues as well.
- csydas 9y ago
  Almost never upvote, but did here. This book will be a quick read for most people, as the author is very good with her prose and knows how to weave a narrative. The impact that Ms. Lacks had on modern science cannot be understated, and it will be a good evening read that both gives you a basic run down of the impaction science that her cells had on modern medicine as well as a very sad story with some positive outlooks on the results of Ms. Lacks' contribution to modern medicine.
- monocasa 9y ago
  Also Adam Curtis's "The Way of All Flesh". https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C0lMrp_ySg8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C0lMrp_ySg8
fmitchell0 9y ago
While it may be taboo, I think it's important to add context to her impact. Her 'contributions' were more than a 'sad story'. She was a Black woman who was experimented on without consent and without compensation who created one of the most important cell lines in medical research. 'Contribution' implies she did it willingly. 'Sad' implies it was unavoidable. These were deliberate acts grounded in racism and sexism to rob an American and human being of any reasonable sense of dignity. The fact that she happened to have remarkable genetics is a key leverage point that can remind people of the importance of ethics, not just science. It's extremely important for that to be a part of the headline, not just a detail if you click through to the story.
- whatshisface 9y ago
  A couple clarifications: it was the cancer that had the unique mutation, Henrietta was genetically healthy. Secondly, it wasn't an experiment, they took a biopsy: an important distinction because black people were literally experimented on[1] from 1932 to 1972. Finally, the Wikipedia page downplays the racist element in the biopsy, claiming that "At that time, permission was neither required nor customarily sought."[2] [1]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuskegee_syphilis_experiment https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuskegee_syphilis_experiment [2]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henrietta_Lacks https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henrietta_Lacks
  - elil17 9y ago
    Even if it was standard practice, it is not fair that pharma companies are making billions off of her cells when her descendants are struggling to get by
    - letitgo12345 9y ago
      Market valuation is determined by supply and demand. HeLa cells are substitutable goods in that if Henrietta asked for money for the cells, it would have been easy to find some other donor. Also it's overly simplistic to say pharma companies are making "billions" off her cells. HeLa is a part of the workflow but far far far from the only part. Also value is in the work of scientists understanding the cell biology using her cells as a model, not some inherent value in the particular genome of HeLa.
mhb 9y ago
It is apparently not unusual for hospitals now to do pelvic exams on anesthetized patients without consent: Pelvic Exams On Anesthetized Women Without Consent: A Troubling And Outdated Practice: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17088054 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17088054
Angostura 8y ago
The one piece of imagery, the piece doesn't mention. Her hat is designed to deliberately echo renaissance halos, I guess.

73 points by Balgair 9y ago

The OP is a light, short article that thoroughly justifies the title. Not sure why the HN title is different, editorialized, and less informative than the original article.

deleted 9y ago
[deleted]
dang 9y ago
We changed the title from "The new Henrietta Lacks' portrait is really good". Submitters: please follow the HN guidelines, which ask: "please use the original title, unless it is misleading or linkbait" and "Don't editorialize." https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html
- Balgair 9y ago
  my bad!

scott_s 9y ago

Radio Lab did a great episode on Henrietta Lacks in 2010: https://www.wnycstudios.org/story/91716-henriettas-tumor/ https://www.wnycstudios.org/story/91716-henriettas-tumor/

deleted 9y ago

[deleted]

iopuy 9y ago

If anyone is curious about her life and contributions to science, I'd pick up a copy of The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks (https://amzn.to/2rLLIHU https://amzn.to/2rLLIHU). It touches on some pretty heavy sociological issues as well.

csydas 9y ago
Almost never upvote, but did here. This book will be a quick read for most people, as the author is very good with her prose and knows how to weave a narrative. The impact that Ms. Lacks had on modern science cannot be understated, and it will be a good evening read that both gives you a basic run down of the impaction science that her cells had on modern medicine as well as a very sad story with some positive outlooks on the results of Ms. Lacks' contribution to modern medicine.
monocasa 9y ago
Also Adam Curtis's "The Way of All Flesh". https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C0lMrp_ySg8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C0lMrp_ySg8

fmitchell0 9y ago

While it may be taboo, I think it's important to add context to her impact. Her 'contributions' were more than a 'sad story'. She was a Black woman who was experimented on without consent and without compensation who created one of the most important cell lines in medical research. 'Contribution' implies she did it willingly. 'Sad' implies it was unavoidable. These were deliberate acts grounded in racism and sexism to rob an American and human being of any reasonable sense of dignity. The fact that she happened to have remarkable genetics is a key leverage point that can remind people of the importance of ethics, not just science. It's extremely important for that to be a part of the headline, not just a detail if you click through to the story.

whatshisface 9y ago
A couple clarifications: it was the cancer that had the unique mutation, Henrietta was genetically healthy. Secondly, it wasn't an experiment, they took a biopsy: an important distinction because black people were literally experimented on[1] from 1932 to 1972. Finally, the Wikipedia page downplays the racist element in the biopsy, claiming that "At that time, permission was neither required nor customarily sought."[2] [1]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuskegee_syphilis_experiment https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuskegee_syphilis_experiment [2]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henrietta_Lacks https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henrietta_Lacks
- elil17 9y ago
  Even if it was standard practice, it is not fair that pharma companies are making billions off of her cells when her descendants are struggling to get by
  - letitgo12345 9y ago
    Market valuation is determined by supply and demand. HeLa cells are substitutable goods in that if Henrietta asked for money for the cells, it would have been easy to find some other donor. Also it's overly simplistic to say pharma companies are making "billions" off her cells. HeLa is a part of the workflow but far far far from the only part. Also value is in the work of scientists understanding the cell biology using her cells as a model, not some inherent value in the particular genome of HeLa.

mhb 9y ago

It is apparently not unusual for hospitals now to do pelvic exams on anesthetized patients without consent: Pelvic Exams On Anesthetized Women Without Consent: A Troubling And Outdated Practice: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17088054 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17088054

Angostura 8y ago

The one piece of imagery, the piece doesn't mention. Her hat is designed to deliberately echo renaissance halos, I guess.