Luján Statement on Passage of Legislation Honoring Henrietta Lacks, Reducing Barriers to Diversity in Clinical Trials

Statement

U.S. House Assistant Speaker Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) issued the following statement after the House passed legislation recognizing the contributions of Henrietta Lacks to medical research, and requiring a study on barriers to participation in federally funded cancer clinical trials by people of color and other underrepresented groups.

"The last seventy years of advances in medical research and treatments are inextricably linked to Henrietta Lacks' legacy. Her cells, taken without her consent, played an essential role in developing a polio vaccine, achieving medical breakthroughs in cancer and HIV/AIDS, and mapping the human genome. Even today, HeLa cells are being used by scientists to better understand COVID-19.

"It's long past time that Congress recognizes the contributions of Henrietta Lacks and works to address the barriers that keep people of color from participating in important medical research that impacts their health. I was proud to support Congressman Mfume's legislation, and I hope Congress will take action on further legislation, like my CLINICAL TREATMENT Act, to ensure all Americans can access clinical trials."

Background

Henrietta Lacks, a Black woman, was just 31 years old when she died of cervical cancer in 1951. While undergoing cancer treatment, doctors at the John's Hopkins Hospital took samples of her tumor cells without her or her family's consent. Unlike other cells extracted at the time and largely afterwards, Lacks' cells survived and multiplied outside of the body. Her miracle cells, dubbed "HeLa cells," were used to test and then further develop the polio vaccine and have advanced treatments for cancer, HIV/AIDS, Parkinson's disease and other diseases.

According to the American Cancer Society, at least 20% of cancer clinical trials fail because of low enrollment from minorities. The Henrietta Lacks Enhancing Cancer Research Act directs the Government Accountability Office to review barriers to participation in cancer clinical trials by populations that have been traditionally underrepresented in research and to outline policy options to make these federally-funded cancer trials more racially inclusive and therefore more effective.

The American Society of Clinical Oncology has identified lack of coverage for routine care costs in Medicaid as one significant barrier to cancer clinical trial participation. Luján introduced the CLINICAL TREATMENT Act to ensure all Medicaid enrollees can participate in clinical trials, protecting low-income patients' access to cutting-edge care while improving the quality of clinical research data. The importance of diversity in clinical trials has been further highlighted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Luján has questioned officials at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), including Dr. Anthony Fauci, about the accessibility of COVID-19 vaccine clinical trials for Medicaid enrollees.

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