Chapter 23 Study Guide - The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

Why did advances in genetic research necessitate establishing the legal requirement that doctors or researchers obtain informed consent documentation prior to taking DNA samples from patients for research?

Advances in genetic research necessitate establishing the legal requirement that doctors or researchers obtain informed consent documentation prior to taking DNA samples from patients because it deals with violation of privacy. By collecting samples from a patient, a scientist could uncover the genetic information from your sample which could lead to a violation of the patient's privacy. Pg. 187

How did Bobette find out about HeLa?

Bobette found out about HeLa while she was visiting with her friend, Gardenia, and her brother-in-law. Bobette mentioned that her last name was Lacks, which caught the attention of Gardenia's brother-in-law. He asked her if she was related to Henrietta Lacks because he was working with her cells in his lab. When Bobette realized that he was in fact talking about her mother-in-law, Henrietta, she freaked out because she realized that she had been used in research. Pg. 179-180

How long had Henrietta been dead when her family found out that her cells were still alive?

Henrietta had been dead almost 25 years before her family found out that her cells were still alive. Pg. 180

Analyze the last paragraphs of this chapter. What does Hsu's request reveal about her attitude towards the Lackses? What does Skloot reveal by ending the chapter with Hsu's request?

Hsu's request reveals her greed and lack of empathy for what the Lacks family has already gone through concerning doctors and public attention. Hsu cares little about the possible feelings of the family and only cares about her benefits from gaining the family's samples and possibly conducting more research on them.

Why did researchers want DNA samples from Henrietta's family?

Researchers wanted DNA samples from Henrietta's family because they were trying to find genetic markers that were specific to Henrietta so that they could determine which cells were hers and which were not. They hoped that by developing genemaps of her family members, they could determine what genes made up the HeLa cells. Pg. 181

What were some of Deborah's fears and concerns after she found out that her mother's cells were still alive?

Some of Deborah's fears and concerns after she found out that her mother's cells were still alive were that she thought she would die at thirty, like her mother, or that she would have cancer and die. Deborah was terrified that her children would grow up without a mother. Pg. 184-185

Why did the Lacks family think the doctors were taking their blood?

The Lacks family thought that the doctors were taking their blood because they wanted to test them for the same cancer that Henrietta had. This couldn't have been true because there was no such development in science at the time. Pg. 182

The title of this chapter contains an allusion to the classic horror movie Frankenstein. What does this allusion suggest about the tension between scientific discovery and public perception and fear of such discoveries?

The allusion to "Frankenstein" suggests that the tension between scientific discovery and public perception was based on the fear of a monstrous abomination. The public feared that such discoveries would lead to the creation of a monster that would harm the people.

From a legal standpoint, how is the fact that the doctors failed to obtain consent prior to taking blood from the Lacks family in 1973 different from their initial failure to obtain consent from Henrietta in 1951?

The fact that the doctors failed to obtain consent prior to taking blood from the Lacks family in 1973 is different from their initial failure to obtain consent from Henrietta in 1951 because there were no laws stating that informed consent was required in the 1950s.

Did researchers explain why they wanted DNA samples to the Lacks family? Did the family give informed consent for the research done on those samples?

The researchers did not accurately explain why they wanted DNA samples from the Lacks family. They simply stated that they wanted to test their children for the type of cervical cancer that Henrietta had, not that they wanted DNA samples to help map the genes of the HeLa cells. Since the family was not given accurate information on the specifics of the procedures, they could not possibly have given informed consent. Pg. 182