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Why Is The Immortal Life Of Henrietta Lacks Ethically Wrong

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In the book The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks there were many actions/choices that are debatable in whether or not they were ethically wrong or right. One topic that stands out in the book is the fact that the doctors took Henrietta’s cells without “official” consent. Three reasons why I believe this was wrong is because they did not correctly inform Henrietta about her treatments, this exploited her and her family which was immoral and unjustified, and because a bigger, long term problem was made.I stand by my argument because I felt it was wrong how a couple of doctors took cells and caused unnecessary problems for the Lacks family. I have sympathy toward the family because one fault that one person did should not have made these people this stressed, angry, and upset. My argument may be opposed in view of the fact that the doctors did give …show more content…

Looking on page 31 it shows what was written on the consent form; it states “ I hereby give consent to the staff of The Johns Hopkins Hospital to perform any operative procedures and any anaesthetic either local or general that they may deem necessary in the proper surgical care and treatment...”. Building off this point one of her doctors TeLinde, who operated on her took samples of tissue without asking if she would like to be a donor and sent them to another facility. This did not have any beneficial effect to her treatment or wellness which means that it shouldn’t have been done without her knowing . The hospital also did not inform Henrietta that after her treatments she would not be able to have children; which they “claimed” they did. Not only did the doctors take something of Henrietta’s without asking they didn't tell her the risks or repercussions of the treatment. In a hospital it should be someone’s main priority to make sure the patient knows what's happening to his or her

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