Question

1. Identify and evaluate examples of conflicts of interest raised in Part II of the Henrietta Lacks book   

Answer 1

#George Gey plays a complicated role in this story because, while he may have been an excellent scientist, his pursuit of science above all else hurt those around him.
We see his ability to ignore Henrietta’s humanity again in his reaction to Henrietta’s death.

He requests more cell samples, ignoring the fact that a woman had just died. This request led hospital workers to ask permission multiple times from Day, a grieving husband, which shows disrespect for his emotions.

Gey had an admirable desire to continue pursuing new research instead of coasting on his fame from HeLa, but in order to receive compensation for any of his work, his wife had to perform the tedious tasks of writing out and submitting his findings.

In this way, his scientific devotion forced his wife to perform the more menial duties he didn’t feel like completing, while he received full credit for the work. Nevertheless, Gey’s generosity with HeLa cells doubtlessly allowed for the considerable good they did for medicine.

The way in which Gey’s scientific greatness and benevolence doesn’t match his personal actions signifies that being a good scientist doesn’t necessarily translate into being a good person.

# Gey and TeLinde’s desire to protect Henrietta’s privacy conflicts with Deborah’s anger in previous chapters over people not knowing Henrietta’s true name.

Their differing opinions draw attention to the fact that the Lacks family was left out of the conversation about privacy, and raises questions about the doctors’ motivations for protecting Henrietta’s privacy.

They may have simply realized the sensitive nature of revealing the name of a cervical cancer patient. However, they may also have been concerned about racist backlash from the white public if it were known these scientific breakthroughs came from a black woman’s cells.

Regardless of their motivation, Deborah felt that hiding Henrietta’s name took the credit and attention away from her mother.

The Lacks family never got a voice in this discussion about privacy, however, because the Hopkins doctors never told them about the cells. In this way, the privacy decisions Gey and TeLinde made mirrors the doctrine of benevolent deception.

The family never got to decide for themselves whether they wanted the world to know Henrietta’s name or not because Gey and TeLinde made the decision for them without giving them adequate information or even letting them know there was a decision to make.