What kind of cancer did Henrietta Lacks have?

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Prepare for the PLTW Biomedical Science Test. Study with flashcards and multiple choice questions, each question comes with hints and explanations. Get ready for your exam!

Multiple Choice

What kind of cancer did Henrietta Lacks have?

Explanation:
Understanding where a cancer starts helps identify the origin of the cells used in famous research lines. Henrietta Lacks had cervical cancer, and the HeLa cell line was developed from cells taken from her cervical tumor in 1951 at Johns Hopkins. That tissue origin is why the answer is cervical cancer—the cervix is the site of the cancer from which these immortal cells were derived, enabling widespread biomedical research. The other options—breast, lung, and prostate cancers—are cancers of different organs and were not the source of HeLa cells.

Understanding where a cancer starts helps identify the origin of the cells used in famous research lines. Henrietta Lacks had cervical cancer, and the HeLa cell line was developed from cells taken from her cervical tumor in 1951 at Johns Hopkins. That tissue origin is why the answer is cervical cancer—the cervix is the site of the cancer from which these immortal cells were derived, enabling widespread biomedical research. The other options—breast, lung, and prostate cancers—are cancers of different organs and were not the source of HeLa cells.

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