Novartis Reaches Settlement with Henrietta Lacks Estate Over HeLa Cell Profits
A pharmaceutical company, Novartis, has reached a settlement with the estate of Henrietta Lacks in a lawsuit alleging the company profited from Lacks' cells, which were taken without her consent in 1951. The terms of the agreement, finalized in federal court in Maryland, have not been publicly disclosed. This marks the second such settlement for the Lacks estate in litigation against biomedical companies concerning the commercialization of the HeLa cell line.
Settlement Details
Both the Lacks family and Swiss-based Novartis issued a joint statement expressing satisfaction with the out-of-court resolution and declined further comment. The lawsuit, filed in 2024, had sought "the full amount of its net profits" from Novartis's commercialization of the HeLa cell line, which the complaint described as cultivated from "stolen cells." The estate's litigation has generally accused biomedical businesses of benefiting from a medical system that, as alleged in the lawsuits, exploited Black patients.
Background on HeLa Cells
Henrietta Lacks' cervical cells were collected by doctors at Johns Hopkins Hospital in 1951 without her knowledge while she was receiving treatment for cervical cancer. These cells, taken from her tumor, became the first human cells discovered to continuously grow and reproduce in laboratory settings.
Known as HeLa cells, they have since become fundamental to numerous scientific and medical innovations globally, contributing to advancements such as genetic mapping and the development of vaccines for polio and COVID-19.
Despite their widespread use, the Lacks family did not receive compensation. Johns Hopkins Hospital has stated that it never sold or profited directly from the cell lines, though many companies have patented methods of utilizing them.
Prior and Ongoing Litigation
This settlement with Novartis follows an undisclosed agreement reached in 2023 between the Lacks estate and biotechnology company Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. That lawsuit had argued the company continued to commercialize the HeLa cell line long after its origins became widely known. The Lacks estate currently has active lawsuits against other pharmaceutical companies, including Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical and Viatris. Attorneys representing the family have indicated that additional complaints could be filed in the future.
Henrietta Lacks: A Brief Biography
Henrietta Lacks, a tobacco farmer from southern Virginia, relocated with her husband and five children to Turner Station, a historically Black community outside Baltimore. She died of cervical cancer at the age of 31 and was buried in an unmarked grave. Her story, including the scientific significance of her cells and the impact on her family, was extensively documented in Rebecca Skloot's 2010 bestselling book, "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks." An HBO movie based on the story featured Oprah Winfrey portraying Lacks' daughter. Some family members reportedly faced chronic illnesses without health insurance while her cells were widely used in research.