Selling your Cells

"Whether you think the commercialization of medical research is good or bad depends on how into capitalism you are." Baruch Blumberg.

One fundamental point: like it or not, we live in a market-driven society, and science is part of that market.

Should we be able to sell our cells? Most people say yes. A more complicated question would be whether scientists and doctors should have to pay to use cells we "abandon" (for those on one side) or "have stolen" (for those on the other side).

"The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" is a book that will make you think and you will debate with anyone you talk to no matter which side you take. Dave and I basically yelled at each other without ever taking an actual position. We switched places like innings in a baseball game.

I tend to think that we routinely abandon our cells and I don't want to open the door to people marketing their cells. My prediction is that we'll just end up signing another form we don't read, and people will think all is well. Until we sign "form number 354 that we don't read," we'll be outraged at the lack of prior notice.

The solution? INTRODUCE "FORM NUMBER 354 WE DON'T READ"!

Bam! Solved!

Everyone wins. Patients get their "notice" they won't read and scientists get to keep curing people and saving lives without being sued for using what we would have flushed down a toilet. And, when someone gets all uptight about their cells, they can take that appendix home in a jar and let it watch them not sue anyone from the kitchen table.

When you think about it, we lose all outrage about rights as long as we're given the opportunity to hand said rights away unintelligently. I know if I were trying to get people to chill out and let me benefit completely from their cells without paying for it, I would offer them a thickly-worded releases and let the cash roll in! (I joke, but it is being done, so it obviously works)

Well, I would actually fully inform them and not keep anything from those who refuse to sign... I would also insist they dispose of said cells themselves, but that's another matter.

At any rate, I do understand and accept both sides of the argument. The author makes it clear just how egregious previous abuses were. Then again, this all happened when it was legal to bar black patrons from sitting at lunch counters, so it's really not that shocking (not excusable, but not shocking either). Notifications are important, and our choice to ignore what we sign is just Darwin messing with us as usual.

So, although I am sympathetic to those who are actually exploited for their cells, I am also a proponent of good medicine and curing disease. Without use of HeLa cells, we might be a few steps past leaches, so maybe we should calm down about suing the doctor and enjoy not having polio.

At this particular moment, not having polio seems so much better than letting the Lacks family stare at a jar. On the other hand, they should at least have some medical coverage. (See, this isn't an easy topic!).

The great thing about this book is that my take could be completely different if I were to write it tomorrow instead. And, a book that makes me think that much about an issue has to rank as among the most compelling of the year.