March 12 (Reuters) - Generic drugmaker Viatris ( VTRS )

has settled a lawsuit brought by the family of Henrietta Lacks,

a Maryland woman whose tissue samples were used without her

permission to develop enduring cells for lucrative medical

research.

Viatris ( VTRS ) and Lacks' estate told a federal court in Baltimore,

Maryland, on Wednesday that they would dismiss the case with

prejudice, which means it cannot be refiled.

An attorney for Lacks' estate said her family was "pleased

the parties were able to find a way to resolve this matter" and

that details of the settlement were confidential. Spokespeople

for Viatris ( VTRS ) did not immediately respond to a request for comment

and more information.

Lacks' family has filed several lawsuits seeking to recover

profits from the unauthorized use of her cells for drug

research. Her estate settled a related lawsuit against Novartis

in February, resolved another case against Thermo Fisher in 2023

and filed a similar lawsuit against Ultragenyx that is still

ongoing.

Lacks, a Black woman whose story was told in the

best-selling book "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks," sought

treatment for cervical cancer in 1951 at a Baltimore hospital.

She died of cancer later that year at age 31.

Doctors used a sample of her tumor without her knowledge or

consent to cultivate the HeLa cell line. The cells were the

first to survive and reproduce indefinitely in lab conditions,

and have since been used in worldwide medical research on

subjects ranging from the polio vaccine to HIV treatments to

sunscreen.

The estate's 2024 lawsuit accused Canonsburg, Pennsylvania-based

Viatris ( VTRS ) of misusing her cells to test its herpes drug Denavir

and depression treatment Mylan-Mirtazapine. The family requested

the company's profits from commercializing the HeLa line and a

court order blocking Viatris ( VTRS ) from using the cells without its

permission.

Viatris ( VTRS ) did not respond to the allegations in court.