Ethical Issues in Research

Running head: ETHICAL ISSUES IN RESEARCH

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Ethical Issues in Research Although scientists and researchers are actively involved in activities aimed at generating practical evidence to address critical health issues, some scenarios have been reported whereby researchers disregarded the legal and ethical principles of research. The harvesting of cells from Henrieta Lacks in 1951 to study cancerous conditions without the consent of the patient, and the family members is a typical situation indicating a breach of the research ethics (Skloot, 2010).

Henrieta Lacks was an African American woman who died of cancer, but her cells continued being used in cancer study for a long time after her death.

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ETHICAL ISSUES IN RESEARCH

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Personal and Professional Accountability in Nursing Family members and research ethics activists argued that the use of body cells from the deceased without her consent was a total disregard of the human rights as well as the dignity of the deceased and the family members (Whitney, 2016). Albeit Lack’s cells have enabled researchers to generate evidence in the fight against cancer, the ethical concerns raised are enormous and valid (Miller, 2012). The only way the study could have been conducted without generating ethical issues is by involving the family members. This could have provided the family with an opportunity to approve the use of the deceased body cells.

Research ethics have it that informed consent must be sought from all participants in a research study to avoid ethical implications (Whitney, 2016). Informed consent is the major ethical theme which guides the extraction as well as the widespread utilization of human cells in research (Miller, 2012). An important aspect to note is that researchers do not have a right to compel anyone to participate in a study without their consent. Informed consent ensures the rights of the participants are protected besides making sure that no one is subjected to potentially harmful treatment (Whitney, 2016).

ETHICAL ISSUES IN RESEARCH

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Miller, T. (2012). Ethics in qualitative research. London, UK: SAGE. Skloot, R. (2010). The immortal life of Henrietta Lacks. New York, NY: Crown Publishing Group.

Whitney, S. N. (2016). Balanced Ethics Review: A Guide for Institutional Review Board Members. Cham: Springer International Publishing.