Health
WHO Honors Henrietta Lacks for "Incalculable" Medical Breakthroughs By Li Cohen
▲ henrietta-lacks-family-photo-nationalh i tt l k f il h t ti l institute-of-health.jp © Credit: CBSNews ► Henrietta Lacks / Credit: National Institutes of Health © Provided by CBS News THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION (WHO) on Wednesday, October 13th, awarded a posthumous award to Henrietta Lacks, a Black woman who unknowingly had her body's cells biopsied while undergoing cancer treatment — and ultimately helped change medical history. The cells that were taken from Lacks' tumor, called HeLa cells, were the first human cells to be successfully cloned, and have since been infinitely reproduced. Those cells, WHO said in a statement, "have allowed for incalculable scientific breakthroughs" related to the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine, polio vaccine, drugs for HIV and cancers, COVID-19 research, and even the effects of zero gravity. WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus bestowed the award, saying it's important for the organization to acknowledge 47
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her nonconsensual, but critical, contribution to modern medicine. For years, WHO said, Lacks' race and story were hidden by the global scientific community. "In honoring Henrietta Lacks, WHO acknowledges the importance of reckoning with past scientific injustices, and advancing racial equity in health and science," the Director-General said. "It's also an opportunity to recognize women - particularly women of color - who have made incredible but often unseen contributions to medical science." Lawrence Lacks, one of Henrietta Lacks' five children, received the WHO's award on her behalf Wednesday. "My mother's contributions, once hidden, are now being rightfully honored for their global impact," see page 48
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