Henrietta Lacks
Barrinique Richardson 7th Period
Intro
Commemorating Henrietta Lacks and proposing that she should have a monument made in recognition for her. Why? Because her cells became the first immortal cell line in history. This is a worthwhile project because there isn't any memorials out there honoring her for what her cells have done for our medical field.
Evidence
- Ethical
- Henrietta had a way with children
- As a mother, Henrietta was loving and affectionate
- she was also a strong person who did not hesitate to discipline her children when she felt it necessary.
- Logical
- A HeLa cell is a cancerous cell belonging to a strain continuously multiplied since its isolation from Henrietta since 1951 battling cervical cancer.
- Although there was some other immortal cell lines, the HeLa cell line was the first and remains the most widespread in the medical field.
- Her cells made it possible for our medical field to come up with all the vaccines and medicines that we have today also used for cancer research.
- Eventually Johns Hopkins doctor started sending her cells to other medical facilities around the world.
- In 1952, the worst year of the polio epidemic, HeLa cells were used to test the vaccine that protected millions.
Rebuttal/Concession
Yes,some will oppose or disagree with the making of the project. People who will disagree are mainly the crowd who believes the immortal cell line is a nothing but a tale. That perspective and opinion is flawed because theres so much evidence and proven test around the world that depicts that everything that happened with her being diagnosed with cervical cancer and doctors soon realizing her cells constantly grew rapidly.
Location and Design
Location
The monument will be located outside the Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore,Maryland where she died,because thats practically where the end of her life began.
Design
The specific design of the monument will be an exact 5' foot statue of her on top of a platform/base stating her life and death dates and also the significance of her and her life.
Conclusion
Henrietta Lacks should have a statue made in recognition of her because she made one of the greatest medical contributions ever.Her cells, taken from a cervical-cancer biopsy, became the first immortal human cell line ,the cells reproduce infinitely in a lab