PRINTER'S NO. 4268
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE RESOLUTION
No.
1175
Session of
2018
INTRODUCED BY DAVIDSON, BIZZARRO, HENNESSEY, READSHAW, NEILSON,
HILL-EVANS, THOMAS, MILLARD, MURT, YOUNGBLOOD, CALTAGIRONE,
KINSEY, FITZGERALD, SCHWEYER AND DAVIS, OCTOBER 16, 2018
INTRODUCED AS NONCONTROVERSIAL RESOLUTION UNDER RULE 35,
OCTOBER 16, 2018
A RESOLUTION
Designating October 4, 2018, as "Henrietta Lacks Day" in
Pennsylvania.
WHEREAS, Henrietta Lacks was born August 1, 1920, in Roanoke,
Virginia, and was given the name Loretta Pleasant, which she
later changed; and
WHEREAS, Following the death of her mother in 1924, Henrietta
was sent to live with her grandfather on a tobacco farm in
Clover, Virginia, where she met her future husband David Lacks;
and
WHEREAS, Henrietta conceived her first child with David Lacks
in 1934 and they later married in 1941; and
WHEREAS, Henrietta and David had a total of five children
over the course of her lifetime; and
WHEREAS, The Lacks family eventually moved from Virginia to
Maryland during World War II in search of wartime employment;
and
WHEREAS, Henrietta visited Johns Hopkins Hospital, one of the
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few hospitals to treat poor African-Americans at the time, on
January 29, 1951, to diagnose and treat an unusual feeling of
abdominal pain; and
WHEREAS, Following an examination at the hospital, Henrietta
was diagnosed with cervical cancer and began undergoing radium
treatments soon thereafter; and
WHEREAS, Henrietta did not respond well to treatment and her
body was quickly consumed with cancer; and
WHEREAS, Although Henrietta ultimately passed away on October
4, 1951, at the age of 31, her cells continue to impact the
world; and
WHEREAS, During Henrietta's treatment her attending
physician, Dr. Howard Jones, sent a sample of her cancer cells
without her consent to a prominent cancer and virus researcher,
Dr. George Gey, who had begun collecting cells of patients who
visited Johns Hopkins Hospital with cervical cancer; and
WHEREAS, While most of the cancer cells Dr. George Gey
collected died quickly in his lab, he discovered that
Henrietta's cells were unique in that, instead of dying, her
cells doubled every 20 to 24 hours; and
WHEREAS, Henrietta's cells were found to have the capability
to thrive in tissue culture in Dr. Gey's lab and have since been
cloned and shared freely throughout the world for countless
medical undertakings and research; and
WHEREAS, Henrietta's cells, referred to as "HeLa" cells, have
been used to study the effects of toxins, drugs, hormones and
viruses on the growth of cancer cells without experimenting on
humans; and
WHEREAS, Henrietta's cells have also been used to test the
effects of radiation and poisons, to study the effects of zero
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gravity on human cells, to study the human genome and were
crucial in the development of the polio vaccine; and
WHEREAS, In recent years, the Lacks family has partnered with
Johns Hopkins Hospital to help teach the world about Henrietta
Lacks and her cells through annual events such as the Henrietta
Lacks Symposium and Henrietta Lacks Memorial Lecture, as well as
through educational programs and scholarships for students in
Baltimore, Maryland, and across the world; and
WHEREAS, Henrietta's life has even inspired the creation of
the Henrietta Lacks Foundation, which provides financial
assistance to individuals and families in need who have made
important contributions to scientific research without
personally benefiting from those contributions, particularly
those used in research without their knowledge or consent; and
WHEREAS, As of 2015, there were countless patents that
involve Henrietta's cells and more than 20 tons of her cells
have been grown in culture; and
WHEREAS, It is apparent that many advancements in medical
research have been made possible through Henrietta's cells and,
although she was never aware that her cells possessed unique
properties, Henrietta's contribution has had a lasting impact on
the world; therefore be it
RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives designate October
4, 2018, as "Henrietta Lacks Day" in Pennsylvania.
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