Research Paper On Henrietta Lacks

Henrietta Lacks, originally named as Loretta, was the daughter of Eliza and Johnny Pleasant. After her mother’s death, Henrietta went to go live with her grandfather, Tommy Lacks, in Clover, Virginia. Tommy was a small tobacco farmer who had already taken in some of his other grandchildren. Additionally, Tommy and other Lacks lived closely together and the small area where they lived had become known as Lacks Town. As a beautiful young girl, Henrietta attracted many boys, including her cousin Crazy Joe. Crazy Joe got his name “Crazy” because he was indeed crazy for Henrietta. His name fit perfectly because when Henrietta decided to marry her other cousin David Lacks, he tried to commit suicide in order to stop her. To us, Henrietta would have seemed a mere child in appearance, but to everyone else she was a young woman who even had her first child and became married at the age of 14. Perhaps this is the reason why Henrietta had a way with children. After Henrietta’s and David’s first child, their cousin Fred Garret came down …show more content…
Her stomach was in a knot and sex became unbearable. Despite the pain, Henrietta ignored the pain and only told her close female friends and family. Her own husband Day Lacks never even knew. Henrietta chose to ignore the situation because she was afraid doctors would take out her womb and she would become infertile. Secondly, any major hospital close by was for whites only and they would just kick her to the curb to die.
Once the pain became so unbearable, Henrietta visited a local doctor who referred her to the closest colored hospital which was John Hopkins in Baltimore, Maryland. The gynecologist Howard Jones, was on call and was the first to examine Henrietta. Jones took a sample of the lump that Henrietta complained about to be tested and noted that the growth of the lump must have been rapid since the there was a lack of one three months prior during her birth and