Medical Research Studies Have Come a Long Way from Its Horrific Past

Medical research is conducted by researchers to improve the health of people worldwide by determining ways to prevent and treat diseases [1]. In the case of new treatments and medicines, research is done on people to determine what works and what does not. However, without people volunteering to take part in a study, there would be no medical advancement.

Human partakes in clinical trials are a huge part of medical research. Due to the unfortunate unethical medical atrocities done in the past, clinical trials are now heavily regulated [1]. Regulations are now put in place to protect the rights, welfare of human participants and maintain public trust in the research companies [2]. People that were involved in historic research cases were not even aware that they were being used as guinea pigs.

Experiments were done on them without their knowledge and consent. Some were given incentives but the nature of the experiments was not disclosed. There were a whole lot of inhumane experiments done in the past but often when people talk about historical unethical practices most public health and health officials refer to the Tuskegee Syphilis experiment in the United States of America (USA) [2]. However, that is not the only unethical mishap that happened before.

For some reason, the Tuskegee Syphilis experiment seems to be the most known and popular mishap people seem to know about especially among African Americans and other minorities worldwide. Meanwhile in Africa, during the meningitis epidemic in Nigeria, the Pfizer pharmaceutical company was accused of testing a new drug, Trovan on people without ethical approval [2].

This unfortunate mishap led to 11 children dead and others disabled [2]. Another unethical medical experiment was that of Henrietta Lacks. This particular event brings shivers back my spine. Thanks to Rebecca Skloot, the author of “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks” [3] who did her research and brought forth the facts about what was done on Henrietta Lacks.

Before Henrietta lacks passed away from Cervical Cancer, her cervix cells were harvested without her knowledge. Hence the name “Hela cells” was not only alive but grew indefinitely in the laboratory where it was kept [3]. Over the years these “Hela cells” were cultured, bought, sold, packaged, and shipped to laboratories around the world [3].

The above stories mentioned are just the tip of what was done in the past. We can all understand why people are so wary of taking part in any clinical trials, trying any new treatments or vaccines. While people's fears and concerns are valid, we should also understand that times have changed. We have people working day and night to uncover the truth and hold researchers accountable for any unethical medical misconduct.

Let us give medical research a chance and believe that what happened in the past cannot happen today.

References

1. Research Guides: Participating in Health Research Studies: What is Health Research?. (2021). Retrieved 26 March 2021, from https://guides.library.harvard.edu/healthresearch

2. Agoro, R. (2020). In the COVID-19 era, let’s keep an eye on clinical trials in Africa [pdf] (pp. Volume 10 No. 2). Indianapolis: Journal of Global Health. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7535135/

3. Tracing The 'Immortal' Cells Of Henrietta Lacks. (2011). Retrieved 26 March 2021, from https://www.npr.org/2011/03/18/134622044/tracing-the-immortal-cells-of-henrietta-lacks