Hela Cells 

#TIL: Hela cells.

The immortal cells of an African-American mother who paved the way for decades of medical research, and she, or her family, didn't get a penny for it.

This is one of the most fascinating stories I've come across, and it's absolutely ridiculous when you realise the systemic inequalities and injustices in play here.

The short story: Henrietta Lacks, gets cervical cancer at 31yo. Her tumor cells were considered unique because they never died unlike previous samples, and were a breakthrough in medical research.

The cells were taken without her consent, and distributed across the world. In fact, they became crucial in testing the efficacy of the polio vaccine. Apparently, consent was not required at this time...

Soon, these cells became insanely popular and were cited in over 60,000 medical research papers and used extensively. So much so... 'they were sent into outer space and subjected to nuclear tests.'

One person's cells were now part of a multi-million dollar industry and Hela's family received nothing for it. It gets worse: The family struggle to pay for medical bills.

In 2010, a book by Rebecca Skloot is published telling the world about the famous cells and the events that transpired since then - https://amazon.in/Immortal-Life-Henrietta-Lacks/dp/1400052181…

In 2017, Oprah recreated Hela's mind-bending story in a film.

And yet, Hela's (mother) cells are the most tested and researched cells in the history.