On Oct. 11, Johns Hopkins Medicine released the following statement in response to reports that it had reached a financial settlement with the family of research volunteer Ellen Roche, a lab technician at the Asthma and Allergy Center, who died after inhaling an experimental chemical during a study:

Johns Hopkins Medicine continues to mourn Ellen Roche's loss and wishes to acknowledge once again her courageous contributions to medical science and her community. Hopkins also greatly appreciates her family's generosity of spirit throughout their time of grief, as well as their magnanimous support of mutual efforts to reach a satisfactory agreement with Hopkins, without the need for lawsuits and court trials.

As a matter of both legal agreement and long-standing policy, Hopkins cannot comment on the nature or process of financial settlements and regrets that it cannot do so in this instance. In the aftermath of her death, Hopkins pledged to do whatever it would take to rigorously protect those who volunteered to advance medical knowledge. We believe we have made significant progress toward this commitment, and it is our hope that our efforts will represent a lasting and appropriate tribute to her memory. We also want to reaffirm our wish to work with the family to plan a formal Hopkins memorial that will further celebrate Ellen's life and her contributions.

For details about Hopkins efforts to strengthen its research protections, visit our Web site at http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org and search under "research volunteer."