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Henrietta Lacks is born in Roanoke, Virginia.
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George Gey successfully cultures the first immortal human cell line using cells from Henrietta’s cervix
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Henrietta Lacks dies of cervical cancer.
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Scientists use HeLa cells to help develop the polio vaccine.
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The alias Helen Lane first appears by a reporter as the source of HeLa cells.
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The term “informed consent” first appears in court documents.
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The Board of Regents of the University of the State of New York finds Southam and a colleague guilty of unprofessional conduct and calls for stricter guidelines regarding human research subjects and informed consent.
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Stanley Gartler drops the HeLa bomb and proposes that HeLa cells have contaminated numerous cell lines.
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George Gey dies of pancreatic cancer
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John Moore unsuccessfully sues his doctor and the Board of Regents of the University of California for property rights over his tissues. Moore appeals the decision
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The Supreme Court of California rules against John Moore,
saying that once tissues are removed from the body, with or without consent, a person no longer owns those tissues. -
More than 150,000 scientists join the American Civil Liberties Union andbreast cancer patients in suing Myriad Genetics over its breast-cancer gene patents.The suit claims that the practice of gene patenting violates patent law and has inhibited scientific research.