Full Text of HR0004 101st General Assembly
HR0004 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
| | HR0004 | | LRB101 02885 MST 47893 r |
|
| 1 | | HOUSE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, In 1951, Henrietta Lacks visited The Johns Hopkins | 3 | | Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland, one of only a few hospitals | 4 | | that would treat poor African Americans; and
| 5 | | WHEREAS, Henrietta Lacks began receiving treatment for | 6 | | cervical cancer; a sample of her cells was taken and sent to | 7 | | researcher Dr. George Gey, who had been collecting cells from | 8 | | all patients who sought treatment at Johns Hopkins for cervical | 9 | | cancer; at that time, there were no protocols for informing | 10 | | patients or for getting consent for research of their cell or | 11 | | tissue specimens; and
| 12 | | WHEREAS, While all the other samples quickly died, the | 13 | | cells from Henrietta Lacks doubled every 20 to 24 hours; her | 14 | | cells, known as "HeLa" cells, are still being used today to | 15 | | study the effects of toxins, drugs, hormones, and viruses on | 16 | | the growth of cancer cells without the need to experiment on | 17 | | humans; her cells have also been used in the development of | 18 | | treatments for polio, leukemia, AIDS, chemotherapy, in vitro | 19 | | fertilization, and in the study of the effects of zero gravity | 20 | | in space; and
| 21 | | WHEREAS, Henrietta Lacks passed away on October 4, 1951, | 22 | | but her "immortal cells" continue to impact the world; there |
| | | HR0004 | - 2 - | LRB101 02885 MST 47893 r |
|
| 1 | | are 17,000 U.S. patents that involve HeLa cells; and
| 2 | | WHEREAS, Johns Hopkins University recently announced that | 3 | | it will name a new research building on campus in honor of | 4 | | Henrietta Lacks, an announcement that was made during the | 5 | | university's ninth annual Henrietta Lacks Memorial Lecture | 6 | | series; and
| 7 | | WHEREAS, The building is an enduring testament to a beloved | 8 | | mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother and generations of | 9 | | miraculous discoveries that have altered the landscape of | 10 | | modern medicine and benefited humanity; therefore, be it
| 11 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE | 12 | | HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | 13 | | we recognize the profound effect that Henrietta Lacks and her | 14 | | "immortal cells" have had on millions of lives around the | 15 | | world, and we commend Johns Hopkins University on honoring her; | 16 | | and be it further
| 17 | | RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be | 18 | | presented to the family of Henrietta Lacks and John Hopkins | 19 | | University as a symbol of our respect and esteem.
|
|