Culturing and growing humans cells without the owners consent

One such issue is whether or not culturing and growing of human cells without the owner’s consent should be allowed. In this paper, it will be argued out that the same should be allowed but on one condition, that is, the owner should get a profit in a case where by the cell lines end up earning a profit. Culturing and growth without consent should be allowed for three reasons. Foremost, culturing and growing human cells is for the better good of mankind and the future. Additionally, it is harmless to those whose cells are used. However, all the malignant cells that Guy took from patients would not survive outside the human body and ended up dying. This indicates that the success rates from culturing and growing human cells is low, thus demanding that any chance should be used to acquire cells and attempt to grow them.

Guy experienced success with Henrietta’s cells. The doctor realized that Henrietta’s cells were special since they were capable of growing unlike the human cells from other people that died once they were taken from the body. Within a day, the cells of Henrietta which had been cultured in a petri dish had doubled in size. Apart from helping in cancer studies, culturing and growing human cells has a lot of other applications that are of benefit to mankind and the future. Some of these benefits are discussed below. System Models The science of culturing and growing cells is important in developing model systems for study. It is because of cell culturing and growth that cell biology and biochemistry has been studies.

As a result, human beings now have an understanding of the interaction that occurs between cells and agents which cause diseases such as virus and bacteria. These benefits only exist because scientists were allowed to study virus through cell growth and culturing. Consent should not be required for taking cells that are already infected by a virus for the purposes of studying the virus to understand it. Toxicity Testing New drugs usually have to go through toxicity tests before they are accepted for use (Dykens, and Yvonne, 779). Cell culturing and growth allows for these tests to be made in an environment where no person has to be exposed to unknown harm. The cells that have been cultured in a lab can be used to study effects of new chemicals, cosmetics, and drugs to the human cells under various conditions.

Genetic Benefits Cell culturing and growth also has a number of genetic benefits. For instance, cells taken from pregnant mothers have helped to understand fetal genetic disorders, thus leading to interventions to prevent them. Additionally, cell cultures have allowed scientists to access the effects of introducing new genetic material like a RNA or DNA to a cell. These studies have led to the production of commercially important proteins, having a better understanding of the expression of new genes, and learning the full potential of mankind (Hockemeyer et al. Lastly, cell culturing and growth of human cells has allowed for the improvement of gene therapy that has benefited thousands of people across the globe. Additionally, the process involved is technical and complex and may not be understood by many people.

Most importantly, however, people run no risks by virtue of having their cells taken for culturing and growth. Again, the case of Dr. Guy and Henrietta comes to mind. In the decades that Guy took cells from his patients, he had never caused any of them harm. Additionally, the techniques of separating individual cells from the tissue do not harm a person. All the separation is done outside the body and in a lab environment. Therefore, at no point will a person be exposed to any sought of harm because their cell is being used in culturing and growth. As such, it should not be necessary to seek for consent because the patients need no protection from a harmless process. Consent usually protects the healthcare professionals from legal matters that may arise in case the patients are harmed.

Some of her cells were solved for profit. It is established that from the cells of Henrietta which had been taken by Guy, tons of money was made from a multi-billion dollar industry which resulted (Skloot). The story of Henrietta reveals why people desire to give consent before their cells can be taken for culturing. It is shameful that Henrietta’s family was wallowing in poverty all this time and could not even afford medical care. As a result, when they learnt of the money made from their mother’s cells twenty years after her death, they were tempted to sue and hold accountable those who used their mother’s cells without her consent (Skloot, 16). However, it should be mandatory to channel any profits made to the owners of successful cells and their families.