Necessary Wrong

Henrietta Lacks' story revolves around a question that we have debated quite a bit in our past topics. Do the ends justify the means? I think that in this case they do. While I do agree that taking Henrietta's cells without asking her permission was not the right thing to do, I also think that if they hadn't a lot of what we have today might not exist or might not be as good as it is. I don't think one person from our class can say that they haven't benefited from the use of her cells. I am sure most if not all of us had chicken pox, rubella, measles, and the flu vaccine before. Personally I had all of those done, as well as had all the Gardasil vaccinations. Her cells were used in development of chemotherapy treatments of which my mom went through with breast cancer, so I am extremely grateful for that medical development made possible by her cells. I think that Henrietta's family knows how important her cells have been to the world, but the would like recognition that it was Henrietta's cells that provided all those possibilities. 

Henrietta Lacks Pt. 1 and 2

I really enjoyed reading these parts of the book so far. It was interesting to hear about the process that the author went through obtaining the information about Henrietta from her family. I found our discussion about the family and what they expected out of their mother's contribution interesting. The way I saw it was they wanted medical care in response to Henrietta's services. Some people thought they should get a public apology from Johns Hopkins or a statue of their mother, but I think because of their financial situation they would benefit more from a compensation or free medical care. I think that we all agreed in class that they deserve something because their mother's cells were taken without permission. It is ironic that her cells are being used towards treating the diseases that some of her immediate family is suffering from. Because of her, they should be first in line to receive these treatments.. but they aren't. 

Guest Speaker: MT

Meghan Tonjes was a great guest speaker for our class. We talk a lot about issues in the world that we think need to stop, and she was a great inspiration on how to get your message out to the world to hear. I think that what she has done for women who are considered bigger to society to be absolutely awesome. I admire her and the other members of Project Life Size's courage to speak about their thoughts and insecurities. I don't know if I would be brave enough to do that, what with all the horrible things that people say to them. 

I also wanted to say that she has an absolutely amazing voice. I thoroughly enjoyed the songs that she sang in class. If you haven't looked up her albums yet, I highly suggest you do so. I did and have been listening to them pretty much non-stop. She has made me think of how I want to reach out to the world about certain issues that I get riled up about. I just have to start small like she did and have faith.

Meghan T

I'm so glad that we had the opportunity to hear from Meghan in class on Tuesday. She was very inspiring hearing all of the things she has done with Project Life size. It is important for everyone to feel like they have somewhere to go and someone to connect to and she gave that to many girls. Her voice was amazing. The fact that she has been on Ellen and known by Perez Hilton and still keeps her composure is important. She isn't getting swept up in her popularity and keeps true to herself. Her initiative to start Project Life Size was very influential when thinking about our activism projects. 

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks Parts I and II

While reading what I really found interesting was the way the author mixed history, the character back story and study of henrietta lacks, as well as all the psychological drama going on. The way the author has done these things really gives a great way of presenting the book to a public audience. For a lack of a better word 'untrained' and inexperienced author she does a great job of reaching a hole number of audiences with the book. Especially considering her background as a white person considering the Lacks families adamant opposition to opening up to people about the HeLa cells. All and all her great delivery of this story really shines a great view into what the family has experienced and how it has effected them and how there family member Henrietta has completely changed the world.

John Plevel

Meghan Tonjes

After the first few minutes of Meghan's presentation I really thought she was a great activist and thought that her guitar playing/singing aspect was just a way to promote her activism. After hearing her I was amazed, I don't like to admit to it but my mom has forced e in the past to watch shows such as American Idol and the voice, and Meghan was at many of the finalists level if not beyond it was incredible. I don;t mean to take away from the great work she has done with project life size and the kind of commitment and determination she has put in to keep such a project going; especially with the changeover and some of the incredibly hateful things that can be posted online. In the end what she has done with project lifesize is amazing, she has an incredible voice, and now that project lifesize is coming to an end I am really interested to see what she will do next.

John Plevel

Henrietta Lacks Part I and II

I think that the debate about what was right or wrong in the case of taking Henrietta's cells will probably go on forever unfortunately. I'd like to compare this case to the one of Marion J Sims. Some people argued that he did many great things and made revelations in terms of women's medicine and health, just as Henrietta's cells have been used to further medicine. But both of these cases were done at the expense of pain of others. I don't think Sims should be considered one of the greatest men of medicine considering what he did to the women he experimented on. No amount of pain that they went through would have made it worth it for those women especially. Just as in Henrietta's case, if she had had the choice of having cancer and her cells being used for medical advancements, compared to being healthy and cancer free, I think she would have chose the later. What bothers me even more is that these medical advancements aren't even helping the populations these women came from. They are helping everyone but them. The fact that Henrietta's family can't even afford health insurance is absolutely ridiculous considering what happened to her. I think at the very least her children should have free healthcare for growing up without a mother and professionals making a profit on her cells that they took unethically.

Erin Pattridge

Meghan Tonjes

I thought Meghan Tonjes was absolutely amazing! Thanks so much Jeff for bringing her in!! Later that night I was youtubing her other videos! And I thought what she was doing with Project Life Size is incredible! We definitely need more people like her in the world to help everyday people get through everyday hardships and let them know they are not alone!

Erin Pattridge

The three major issues in Henrietta Lacks are the issue of conscent, the issue of profit and the health care system in America.  Obviously Henrietta’s concent should have been given for the doctors to take her cells.  Without her concent this is a robbery of the most sacred kind.  Not only did these doctors steal these cells, yet they later would use them for personal profit.  Profit off of something they do not own, these cells should not have a price attached to them.  The largest issue I see is with the health care system in general.  It serves to accommodate rich white people, specifically males.  The fact that the low socioeconomic status of the Lack’s family prohibited their access to innovations of the HeLa cells is ridiculous.  Health care in general should be free and our system punishes the health of poor people.

-Allison Brady

I was really glad Jeff was able to bring Meghan Tonjes into class, she’s an amazing singer who exerts a positive message about believing in yourself, determination and being happy with who you are.  Through her youtube posts we saw that she has started an activism project that sends a positive message to young people who feel “don’t fit the societal mold” about self-acceptance.  Project Lifesize was a phenominal idea that reached out to thousands of people.  I think shes an amazing role model and I hope her career continues to flourish so she can reach out to more people.  Meghan is a strong female who I look up, she is able to put herself out there and take chances that I don’t think I’d have the courage to do.  

-Allison Brady

ends justifies the means

The phrase the end justifies the means refers to the morality of an action. It means that the morality of an action is based solely on the outcome of that action and not on the action itself

One of the main questions I continued to ask myself while reading Rebecca Skloot's book is whether it was the right thing to do. Solely based on the advancements in medicine due to her cells should justify the actions of the doctors at Johns Hopkins regardless of her rights. Of course by adding race and gender or wealth you can add more people to side with how wrong this actions was. But, when something controversial like this occurs, its natural to find any arguments you can to get more supporters.

Like Justin said in class, most likely during this time period what happened to Henrietta was happening to many African Americans. If the Lacks family said no to giving the doctors her cells, they took them anyway without consent, and ended up being normal cancer cells then I do not think her family would have such an issue.

If someone stole my grandfathers cells that ended up being immortal, I would not want money for what they did to him. For compensation, I would just want him to be recognized because his cells is what saved so many lives.

Brian G

Meghan T

Going into class on Tuesday I wasn't sure what to expect from the speaker. I was blown away on how her idea to reach out to those girls who are above average size was put to use in project lifesize. Clearly, results showed that she did make an impact on others lives. What she was able to do gave her success in more than one the way. She was an inspiration to jump on an idea you have to change the world. One of the examples she made in class was that you can't just make a change right away, you need to work at it in little amounts until you see the results. Everyone in class is creating there own activist project. She gave me the thought of "why not" make our theoretical projects a reality. You'll never know what will happen until you try.

Brian G

Advice from the Class?

So I have a personal problem, that is sort of related to our class, and I was hoping that people in the class could help me, and give me some advice on what I should do. Let me start by saying that my Papa (my grandfather) is an extremely important person in my life. While my mother was going to school full time and working full time, my Papa was the one that took care of me and raised me. Even though I am now 22 years old, every week Papa will show up at my door step with groceries, and things he thinks I "need". There has not been a day that has gone by that my Papa doesn't try to help me in anyway possible. Everyone is my family knows that Papa and I have a special connection. That is why my family has kept from me that Papa has been sick, and was diagnosed with prostate cancer. I have noticed that Papa was getting thinner, but every time I asked him if things were okay, he assured me they were. I guess my grandfather wanted to tell me, alone, when he was ready. This news completely destroyed me. I tried to remain calm in front of him, but as soon as I was in my apartment, I just couldn't stop crying. My Papa went back for more tests a few weeks ago, and they found out that the cancer as also spread to his bones. The worst part about this whole situation is that Papa is refusing to go through radiation or chemotherapy. My whole life Papa has been there for me and taken care of me, and I feel like it is my turn to try to take care of him. I want to tell him that I think he is making a huge mistake by not going through with treatment options. But I feel like that is not my place. I just get upset because we read about people, like Henrietta Lacks, who didn't have much control of her options, and what the doctors did to her. Papa actually has options, and I feel like he is choosing the wrong one. I would like an opinion from the class, do you think I should push my Papa to go through with treatments, or let him do what he wants? If I push him, would I be just like every other doctor we have read about that tries to influence their patients? Thank you for your advice in advance.

The other one

The book we are reading in class seems to cover a topic that has many people up in arms.  I wonder if they would be so excited if this woman had been a European immigrant who was, due to her lack of finances, admitted to John Hopkins charity wards with the same problem.  This woman would have been had many of the same problems as Henrietta Lacks, she would have been poor and had only an elementary understanding of English.  Would this then make the actions of the doctors a no never mind?

Joyce Abbott

The Lackses

After learning about Henrietta and her family through reading this book, I'm so happy that someone decided to give them a voice and tell their side of the story. But what I'm wondering is what's next for the Lackses? The book mentioned a woman from Turner Station that's been trying to open a museum in honor of Henrietta. Why hasn't this been more publicized? Why haven't people gotten behind this and tried to raise money for it? We talked about compensation and recognition for Henrietta's family today in class, and I think this would be the perfect way to pay homage to the woman who has saved millions of lives. I think the government or the medical community should help fund this museum either by donating it or creating a foundation in Henrietta's name to raise the money. The Lackses family would likely be very happy with this.

Sarah Bradley

Reaction to Meghan Tonjes

I was absolutely blown away by Meghan's visit to our class.  What a wonderful coup by the Women's Student Union.  Kudos to everyone that was involved with bringing her to Fredonia.  Not only does she sing like an absolute ANGEL, she is also incredibly nice.  Her YouTube posts (which I watched many of following her visit) were really awesome.  Her crusade for bodily acceptance is something that hits home for a lot of people.  Being bullied at any age isn't easy, but especially for elementary and middle school aged children.  The fact that she has garnered recognition from freakin' ELLEN is just so unbelievably cool.  I apologize if that isn't professional language, but it really is just too awesome.  At a time when Adele can be the world's biggest singing sensation, I can't help but think that we're becoming more accepting of plus-sized individuals.  Meghan and her crusade can chalk up a victory in that category, but as she said, there is still much work to be done.

Project Life Size

Today for class we had a speaker. Meghan Tonjes is the starter of project life size and she came into class to talk about it and to also sing for us. after listening to some of the youtube videos it was very inspirational. it is amazing to see how one person can change the lives of many people just by posting something on youtube and talking about their own lives. i feel like this could be helpful to everyone no matter what size you are because there are times where i think everyone feels alone and dont know how to talk to people. it was also inspirational to see how someone can be brought down so much by people she doesnt even know and yet still work towards her dream because she has great freinds and family to back her up. it also opens your eyes to people who look different from you and to know that they are hurt by the things that people say. i would say this was by far the best class this semester.

Sadness, Gladness and Despair

I am fifty pages from finishing the second part of the Henrietta Lacks book. I that for science to take a person and completely wipe away their life and identity is wrong. During the whole semester I have been struggling with the idea of what is in the best interests for the society. It is ok to hurt, kill, mane a few to spare the majority of society. This book makes me never want to get a vaccine, take medication and just stop going to the doctors all together. Not only the fact that scientist didn’t give that Lacks or Henrietta herself any support is horrible. I guess through the other readings in class this has happen to people but, the book shows a whole new perspective on the whole issue. I have finally seemed the whole picture. I have come to love Henrietta, how she was so sweet to her children, and always had red nail polished toes. I feel terrible and ashamed to even have benefited from her suffering. I wonder how many thousands, millions Henrietta’s there are in the world even today. The thing I am most floor by is no new paper bothered to even get her name right!

-Sarah Fiorella

Very Impressed

I was completely blown away by the power of words that Meghan said on Tuesday. She is such an inspiration and gave me so many great ideas for my scholar activism paper. It was really nice to see someone so down to earth talking about what she really felt passionately about. When thinking about my topic I had this far off idea that it had to be something so mind blowing and creative. I racked my brain for days, just to think of something impressive. However now I realize that the things in life that we should be active about are staring us right in the face. I am so happy I was able to meet her and hear her story. It reminded start thinking more close to home than out somewhere in a place far-far away.

-Sarah Fiorella

Immortality

"The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" is the perfect way to begin closing out our semester. I think it really brings together a lot of the ideas and discussions we've generated about the authority of the medical and scientific community over people deemed to be less than. While reading the book, I couldn't help but keep thinking about the word "immortality." It's always been an interesting concept to me, the idea of being able to live forever. Even though the HeLa cells are immortal, we are still a very, very long way (I think, anyway) from developing a way for humans to live forever. But I'm not sure whether or not getting there is actually a good thing. Obviously, it would be great if we could discover more cures for diseases and cancers through the HeLa cells and help save even more lives in the future. But do we really want to live forever? Sure, we'd get to experience an infinite number of historical events, political, economical, and social revolutions, and the development of the entire world. However, what if our family and our loved ones weren't able to live forever with us, or what if immortality was only possible for some people? I feel like we would get really lonely after a while and get tired of living while lots of other people are dying. I also think that, like so many other medical advancements, if the key to immortality were discovered, it could be used for awful things if put into the hands of the wrong people. So, while the idea of it seems kind of cool at first, I honestly hope we don't ever discover the secret to immortality, and if we do, that it's kept hidden from most people.

Sarah Bradley

My Reaction To Meghan Tonjes

I am so glad that Jeff mentioned Meghan Tonjes to the Women's Student Union. I think that everything Meghan is doing with Project Life Size, and her music is wonderful. I wish I had the strength to do some of the things she does. I think that when you define yourself as a feminist, like I do, people have a certain stereotype about you. When I see other feminists, I see how confident they are with themselves, and they don't follow the rules that society has laid out for other women like them. But I am not like that. I am still very self conscious about myself and constantly find myself following the rules of society, so that I fit in. And I envy people like Meghan Tonjes who can go on youtube, talk about things that they are passionate about, and not have to worry about the negative comments that people might leave. I wish was comfortable enough with myself to do what she does. She is an incredibly strong woman. Also, as a musician, she was just amazing, she completely blew me away!

Spirituality in the Book

I found there to be very significant spiritual examples in the book, as well.  I like the idea that Henrietta Lacks is living on in others.  Leslie mentioned the HPV vaccine in her blog post.  Think about how many women, (despite what Michele Bachmann might think) have benefited from that.  Her family seemed to view the cells being carried on as a part of her living on. I think that is really cool.  While she was certainly taken advantage of and was manipulated by an oppressive society, her cells have helped millions of people.

A Cure

It's widely known that a cure for cancer is the Holy Grail of medical research.  Cancer is responsible for tens of millions of deaths across the world every year.  As a result, my question is this: if the HeLa cell line helped us find a cure for cancer, would we still voice moral objections?  Polio was cured using cells from this line.  It is frequently used in AIDS research as well.  Imagine if cells that can trace their ancestor to one woman could bring about a cure to cancer and AIDS.  While the idea that cells were used without the permission of Henrietta, and that certainly presents a moral, societal and racial argument, can we really have that much of an issue with it if it has cured the two greatest diseases in history?

Choosing a sex for herms

Over the weekend I was with some friends and family and the grandfather brought up that one of their relatives was born a hermaphidite and was given a sex.  I forgot the details. I commented that it occurs more often than most people think and the grandmother responded "I don't even want to know," almost out of horror or that the issue is too private to talk about.  I then mentioned that the parents should have let the child choose later on and my friend responded something like it would be easier for the child to choose for them and spare them all the fuss associated with being out of place.  It never even crossed her mind that the baby could just be the way he/she was born to be.  When people are so endoctrined and socialized, how do we make them step outside the bubble?

~ John

The Thickness

I have a friend (more of a Facebook friend) who was in our unit out of Erie, PA. She posts many pictures, anecdotes and quotes that challenge social norms. To society's standard she is overweight. One of the ways she deals with the pressure of being overweight is sharing media like the pictures above. It is evident that when running into her in person or reviewing her profile that she is very sensitive about her size. I'm glad that she is challenging the correlation between thinness and beauty. Many find her frequent posts annoying and call her insecure. I find them interesting, bold, and humorous. Like our guest speaker Megan, my friend is one of the few taking a stance against the harsh challenges--many unwarranted--overweight people face everyday. Until recently I have been the ideal size and weight. Now I am considered 10lbs overweight, but I still find myself attracted to females who are thin. My Facebook friend along with others has slowly started to change the way I view beauty. My sister said this about her husband, "When I first met Mike, I thought he was a fat slob, but after knowing and having experiences with him, I didn't even notice his weight". I still think my brother in law could lose some weight, but then again I'm not sleeping with him...anyways I think I made my point!
Domalski

"Andro-kids"

Does androgyny affect how we view the LGBT community? Just because someone is androgynous does not automatically make them a member of the LGBT community. We typically assign them that status because of our own societal belief that a man should look and dress like a man and a woman should also dress accordingly.  I have many friends who are androgynous.  Some of them identify as gay, some as straight; the point is that there are many different "types" of person.  My religious friends would say that we're all cookies on God's cookie sheet.  The point is that it comes down to personal preference.  A straight woman can dress in wrangler jeans and a flannel shirt.  Her prerogative.  The end.  That is not an issue of gay or straight.  It's an issue of what is comfortable; personal identity trumps all.

Jordan Nicholson

The Role of Gender In Sports

First, I apologize for getting a little behind with my posts.  Excuse the barrage of blog entries.

In response to John's post regarding Brittany Griner, the very talented point guard for the Baylor women's basketball team, I must say that I disagree.  I assure you that this is not sour grapes, despite the fact that my Irish got destroyed by Baylor, eliminating them from their hunt for a national title.  The simple fact is that when it comes to athletics, due to their physiology, men compete at a higher level than women.  That is not sexist, it isn't misogynistic, it is a fact.  I am not saying that all men are better than Brittany Griner, but some men are.  Take golf for example.  The greatest female golfer in history, Annika Sorenstam, worked her entire career to compete in just a minor event on the PGA Tour, not the LPGA tour.  She played well, better than many men, but she did not win the event or even come close.  That isn't to say that Annika Sorenstam isn't an amazing golfer, but that through no fault of her own, there were many men that were better than her.

This is not an attack against women in sports, let me please make that perfectly clear.  Women's bodies are different than men's.  We can all agree on that.  When they play sports that were invented by men, they are already at a bit of a disadvantage.  Women aren't as tall, biologically, so they are immediately at a handicap when it comes to basketball.  Women have breasts, which hinder them when they play golf.  Because of biological differences, their styles of play are also very different.  That is what the Notre Dame rep meant when she said that Brittany "plays like a guy."  She plays a particular style that many women simply cannot play, through no fault of their own.  That is why the comparison was made.  

The HeLa Factory

In Chapter 13, it says that people began growing other cell lines, but none of them flourished as much as HeLa did. Gey regretted that everyone was so focused on HeLa cells rather than working on developing new ones. For me, this represents a small "payback" for Henrietta. Perhaps medical professionals would have thought twice about taking her cells and using them without her knowing if they knew this would happen. I wonder if things would have played out differently if they had been done ethically. I do not think taking her cells the way they did was ethical. Even though good things did come out of it, they should have had her permission - maybe they would have found other cells that would help people. Who knows.

- Josh Steffen

"Sign Your Life Away": The Operation Permit

After receiving a malignant diagnosis, Henrietta signed a statement which gave permission to perform any necessary surgery, she had gone through multiple tests, and had an operation. The doctor took two samples of cervical tissue (one from the tumor and another from healthy cervical tissue), which was sent to Dr. Gey, and they used radium to kill the cancer in her cervix. Do you think that medical professionals took her signing this document as consent to research, and do whatever they wanted with her cells?

- Josh Steffen

Death

Why did they continue to take samples from Henrietta's body after she was dead?  Mary Gey finally saw her as a human being when she was doing the partial autopsy and she saw the red nail polish on her feet.  This would kinda freak me out because you don't know the story behind the person and how they were before they died.

After her death, and many stories were published, Henrietta's name started to get butchered.  They created many pseudonyms so they could get past the consent laws.  This to me was so unethical, it made me sick to my stomach. 

It is very weird to think that Henrietta Lacks's cells are everywhere.  I was vaccinated with the HPV vaccination and her cells were used in making that vaccine.  Where else could her cells be?

Leslie Walter

Life

When reading the first part of the Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, I was very confused on what I was reading.  From a literary standpoint, I do not like the layout of the book and how it jumps form the 50's to the 90's then to the 2000's.  It made it hard for me to follow and sometimes confused me. 

Part One of this novel really showed me how discrimination was really present everywhere in the United States.  Even hospitals treated blacks and whites differently when in this day in age, that would be completely unacceptable.  I don't know how Henrietta's tumor could be misdiagnosed.  I find that completely mind boggling.  Did they do this on purpose? 

When It comes to her cells, I was just shocked that people tried to put a price on cells that were changing the ways of modern medicine.  But the questions is can you put a price on it.  If you can't, how do you let others use them?  All of these questions stand in the grey area of medicine. 

Leslie Walter

HeLa 1

I have Encyclopedia Britannica installed on my computer—the most extensive edition they offer. After reading part 1, of Rebecca Skloot’s book, I wanted to see what information—if any—I could find in the encyclopedia. I typed in the various names associated with Henrietta Lacks, but nothing came up. I typed in He-La and had a hit:

          a cancerous cell belonging to a strain continuously cultured since its isolation in 1951 from a patient suffering from uterine cervical carcinoma. The designation HeLa is derived from the name of the patient. HeLa cells have been widely used in laboratory studies, especially in research on viruses.

I find it interesting that this brief summary of “HeLa” falls into one of Skloot’s main observations. The observation that Henrietta Lacks and her contribution to science is largely veiled from public knowledge. The brief summary mentions that HeLa derives from the name of a patient, but fails to mention that patient’s full name. In addition, the digital article gives little attention and explanation of Lacks’ cells contribution to science. I love having an encyclopedia on hand, it has facilitated school assignments. If I want to know about something I don’t have to rely on the internet. However, it seems in this case, that if I wanted to write an accurate summary about Henrietta Lacks or know something about her, Encyclopedia Britannica wouldn’t be the best source to start with.
Domalski

"HeLa cell." Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Ultimate Reference Suite.  Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica, 2011.

Rogue cells

As I read the book on Henrietta Lacks and the culturing of the cells I was surprised/disgusted at the actions of George Gey.  He, or more likely his staff, got the cancer cells to grow and then he started giving out these cells as though they were manna from heaven.  How could scientists, if they aspire to the high standards they claim, use these rogue cells to perform medical research such as qualifying vaccines?  The properties of these cells, as best I could tell from the book, were never investigated.  The scientists who were and, maybe still are, using these cells do not even know why the cells survived and duplicated.  Despite this firm basic knowledge these cells, according to the book, appear to form the backbone for many medical research projects.  Talk about building your house on sand, really!

Joyce Abbott