Through Jeroslyn JoVonn
February 25, 2026
Henrietta Lacks’ estate has reached a settlement with Novartis over the unauthorized use of her cancer cells, while additional lawsuits are still pending.
The estate of Henrietta Lacks has reached a settlement with Novartis over claims that the company profited from the unauthorized use of her cells in medical research decades after her death.
The terms of the settlement remain confidential, but the agreement brings an end on the legal dispute between Novartis and the estate of Henrietta Lacks, Fierce Pharma reported.
The victory comes two years after a federal lawsuit was filed in August 2024 in Baltimore against Novartis and Viatris, where the family sought a jury trial, alleging all of the profits they claimed were earned through the companies’ use of Lacks’ cells without permission.
“Members of Henrietta Lacks’ family and Novartis are pleased to have found a way to resolve this case brought out of court by Henrietta Lacks’ estate,” a statement said.
Although the case against Novartis has been settled, the estate’s claims against Viatris are still pending, along with a separate 2023 lawsuit against rare disease company Ultragenyx, which the family claims has profited heavily by using Lacks’ cells as a “factory” for its gene therapy products. Novartis becomes the second biopharmaceutical company to settle with the estate, following an undisclosed 2023 agreement that resolved a two-year-old “unjust enrichment” lawsuit between the family and Thermo Fisher.
The lawsuits center on the unauthorized removal of Lacks’ cancer cells in 1951. which one led to the founding of the first immortal human cell line, HeLa. The cells were taken from a tumor during her treatment for cervical cancer at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore and later grown by scientist George Otto Gey, transforming modern medicine.
HeLa cells, which can divide indefinitely, have helped develop the polio vaccine, advance cancer research and support COVID-19 studies. Despite their global impact, Lacks’ family did not receive compensation until 2023 until a legal settlement was reached.
Although Johns Hopkins never profited from HeLa cells, pharmaceutical companies and research institutions have secured thousands of patents using the cell line. According to the lawsuits, Novartis and Viatris had long known about the origin of the cells. A 2021 Novartis web post even referenced Lacks’ story while promoting an initiative to address health disparities through community-based action.
The complaint alleges that Novartis used HeLa cells in the development of products such as the herpes treatment Famvir, the CAR-T therapy Kymriah and the gene therapy Zolgensma, while the listed Viatris treatments include the antidepressant mirtazapine and the herpes drug Denavir. As a result, Lacks’ story received worldwide attention Henrietta’s immortal life is missingRebecca Skloot’s 2010 bestseller, which was later adapted into a 2017 HBO film of the same name starring Oprah Winfrey.
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