by Ken Saladin
Chester M. Southam was a quondam immunologist in addition to oncologist at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in addition to Cornell University Medical College.
In the 1950s, equally a virologist in addition to cancer researcher at Sloan Kettering, Chester Southam was working alongside the famous HeLa strain of cancer cells (named for the root patient Henrietta Lacks, who died of cervical cancer on Oct 4, 1951).
Southam wanted to know if at that spot was a danger of these cancer cells giving cancer to ane of the researchers at the facility past times accidental exposure.
So inwards 1954, he injected the HeLa cells into a dozen hospitalized cancer patients without telling them what he was doing or why.
He lied to them, maxim he was alone testing their immune systems. But he was actually experimenting to run into if the cancer from Henrietta Lacks would grow inwards about other person.
Several of these patients grew tumors virtually ii cm inwards size in addition to inwards ane of the patients, the tumor metastasized to the lymph nodes.
Since these patients already had other cancers, Southam wanted adjacent to run into if the HeLa tumors would grow inwards salubrious persons equally well.
150 state prisoners volunteered to him for diverse reasons (such equally feeling it would assist atone for their crimes) in addition to he injected the HeLa cells into 65 of them inwards 1956.
Tumors grew inwards the prisoners too, on theirs arms at the site of injection.
But all of the prisoners’ antibodies fought off the tumors in addition to they vanished.
Southam in addition to hence injected the HeLa cells into to a greater extent than than 600 other people inwards the years next that, incuding every OB-GYN surgical operation patient at Sloan Kettering, each fourth dimension lying to these patients virtually what he was doing.
“We’re exactly testing for cancer,” he told them.
When all of this came to calorie-free inwards the 1960s, a reporter from Science asked Southam why he didn’t inject the cells into himself instead.
His response was shocking!
Southam only said that he was to a greater extent than of import than these patients, that his life was to a greater extent than essential.
“Let’s appear upward it,” he said to the reporter, “there are relatively few skilled cancer researchers around, in addition to it seemed stupid to get got fifty-fifty a piddling risk.”
Stupid to opportunity his life for research, but non besides stupid (in his opinion) to opportunity the lives of hundreds of other people!
The ethical codes inwards house today would prohibit such a horrific experiment.
Southam’s career would get got been at an halt if he had done such experiments inwards disregard to whatever such code of medical ethics, in addition to he probable would get got been stripped of his medical license in addition to maybe imprisoned.
But such codes didn’t be inwards the 1950s in addition to Southam's alone penalty was a one-year probation.
Southam remained a professor of medicine at Thomas Jefferson University Medical College until the halt of his career inwards 1979.
He endure died inwards Apr 15, 2002, aged 82. Sumber http://www.dnbstories.com/
Chester M. Southam was a quondam immunologist in addition to oncologist at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in addition to Cornell University Medical College.
In the 1950s, equally a virologist in addition to cancer researcher at Sloan Kettering, Chester Southam was working alongside the famous HeLa strain of cancer cells (named for the root patient Henrietta Lacks, who died of cervical cancer on Oct 4, 1951).
Southam wanted to know if at that spot was a danger of these cancer cells giving cancer to ane of the researchers at the facility past times accidental exposure.
So inwards 1954, he injected the HeLa cells into a dozen hospitalized cancer patients without telling them what he was doing or why.
He lied to them, maxim he was alone testing their immune systems. But he was actually experimenting to run into if the cancer from Henrietta Lacks would grow inwards about other person.
Several of these patients grew tumors virtually ii cm inwards size in addition to inwards ane of the patients, the tumor metastasized to the lymph nodes.
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| Chester M. Southam (October 4, 1919 – Apr 5, 2002) |
Since these patients already had other cancers, Southam wanted adjacent to run into if the HeLa tumors would grow inwards salubrious persons equally well.
150 state prisoners volunteered to him for diverse reasons (such equally feeling it would assist atone for their crimes) in addition to he injected the HeLa cells into 65 of them inwards 1956.
Tumors grew inwards the prisoners too, on theirs arms at the site of injection.
But all of the prisoners’ antibodies fought off the tumors in addition to they vanished.
Southam in addition to hence injected the HeLa cells into to a greater extent than than 600 other people inwards the years next that, incuding every OB-GYN surgical operation patient at Sloan Kettering, each fourth dimension lying to these patients virtually what he was doing.
“We’re exactly testing for cancer,” he told them.
When all of this came to calorie-free inwards the 1960s, a reporter from Science asked Southam why he didn’t inject the cells into himself instead.
His response was shocking!
Southam only said that he was to a greater extent than of import than these patients, that his life was to a greater extent than essential.
“Let’s appear upward it,” he said to the reporter, “there are relatively few skilled cancer researchers around, in addition to it seemed stupid to get got fifty-fifty a piddling risk.”
Stupid to opportunity his life for research, but non besides stupid (in his opinion) to opportunity the lives of hundreds of other people!
The ethical codes inwards house today would prohibit such a horrific experiment.
Southam’s career would get got been at an halt if he had done such experiments inwards disregard to whatever such code of medical ethics, in addition to he probable would get got been stripped of his medical license in addition to maybe imprisoned.
But such codes didn’t be inwards the 1950s in addition to Southam's alone penalty was a one-year probation.
Southam remained a professor of medicine at Thomas Jefferson University Medical College until the halt of his career inwards 1979.
He endure died inwards Apr 15, 2002, aged 82. Sumber http://www.dnbstories.com/