Buying and Selling Organs for Transplantation - Report Example

The buying and selling of organs have fast become a profitable business for some individuals. With the advancement of technology, medical science hasbeen able to prolong a patient’s life or cure the same from a disease by replacing the non-performing organ with a functioning one from another individual. Indeed, this has proved to be a great benefit for the patient. However, the demand has grown to be more than the supply resulting to the illegal trade of organs. Despite the good it has done to those in need, the practice of buying and selling organs should be stopped because of the dangers involved in the acquisition of needed organs. Although there have been accounts of organ transplants dating from way before scientific procedures before the norm, the first successful transplant was in 1954 by Joseph Murray and J. Hartwell Harrison. (Schatzki’) The pair’s kidney transplant between identical twins did not end in rejection unlike previous attempts in history. This event led to more enthusiastic medical research on what other parts can be transferred from one person to another. Other than the kidneys, the pancreas, liver, heart and lung are the vital organs used for transplantation. Organs are usually harvested from patients who died in intensive care but “whose vital organs other than the brain are being maintained by medical support”, from patients who have just died and from those who passed away due to critical illness. (Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology, 1) Before the organs are taken from the body, the consent from the relatives of the dead patient is required. At times, the individual also signs a form donating his organs for research or for transplant. Although the intention behind organ trade is admirable, giving up a part of a dying or dead individual to save or extend the life of another, the acute difference between the number of people who need the organs and those who can donate organs have given rise to people taking advantage of others’ financial dilemma to earn money. Before organ sale was regulated and eventually banned, the business, particularly selling of kidneys, was very lucrative in India. (TED) In the Philippines, kidney trafficking is still common especially in poor communities despite a legislation passed in 2003 regarding human trafficking. (Rasheed) In South Africa, patients paid as much as $100,000 US for organs that came from villagers from impoverished areas in Brazil. (Handwerk) In New York, Levy Izhak Rosenbaum admitted to buying kidneys from Israel for $10,000 and selling them in the United States for $120,000. (Daily Mail Reporter) As this kind of medical technology grew popular, more and more patients have preferred to wait for a donor than give up on their ailment. In the U.S. alone, there are more than 80,000 people on the waiting list for a transplant. (Handwerk) However, figures show that there are only 10,000 transplant operations conducted for every 100,000 needed. (Andre and Velasquez) As a result, “an average of 15 people die every day while waiting for an organ that could have saved their lives. (Bailey)” The buying and selling of organs for transplant purposes should not be allowed for several reasons. First, the sick individuals who can afford to buy organs illegally would have a better chance at finding an organ earlier than those who have been on the waiting list for years and years. Moreover, instead of going through legal means, they are compelled by their desire to live to violate the law. Instead of dying and due to the restrictions their country may have against organ trade, recipients have resorted to dealing with syndicates or individual brokers to acquire needed organs. Being on dialysis for 15 years and transplant lists for 7 years, an American woman fearing death before she received a kidney donation finally obtained the organ for $6,000 USD and underwent a kidney transplant in South Africa. (Rohter) In Japan, many rich nationals wanting transplants asked “the body mafia” to find kidney donors in other countries. (Japan: not enough donors) Illegal organ trade should be stopped because although it does benefit both recipient and donor it also makes the individuals participate in a criminal act. The second reason organ trade should be opposed is the health risk it subjects both the recipient and donor. Since buying and selling organs are illegal, the operations have gone underground and are performed in unsafe conditions. In addition, although the donors can live with only one kidney or a smaller piece of liver, they will be more susceptible to disease and sickness. Moreover, after the operation, some donors are left on the street before waking up and some are discharged before the minimum hours required. (May) The buying and selling of organs also raise ethical issues. This is the third reason organ trade should not be supported. There is nothing wrong with organ transplantation. In fact, even if some people think harvesting organs is a mistake, it has been a very welcome accomplishment in the field of medicine as it serves to extend the life of another individual. What makes the activity a moral problem is when the organs are acquired for a price. Until recently, legal donors have not received anything in exchange for giving up some of their internal parts. In a move to encourage more donors and in effect increase the chances of people waiting for transplants, it has been suggested that donors/their relatives be compensated at least enough for hospital expenses during the transplant operation or funeral expenses. In Pennsylvania, such a program has been started wherein residents contribute to a voluntary fund and the money is used to “reimburse food and lodging expenses during the donation process. (Glassberg)” Dr. Lewis Teperman who is the director of transplantation at New York University Medical Center also supports offering a monetary gift as a thank you to the relatives of a deceased donor. (Glassberg) Proponents reason that the illegal trade of organs is rampant because the donors need the money. They say that if payment is given in illegal trade, then it would just be fair to compensate the donors in legal trade. They further argue that if compensation is offered there may be more people willing to donate their organs and the underground market for organ trade would be forced to come out in the open. Paying for organs is similar to “reducing human beings to a commodity. (McNee)” Those who are wealthy will be able to receive the needed organs, even if there is a poor person who probably needs the organ more. It is the right of the living individual to choose what to do with its body. This is why donation is a term used in relation to organ transplantation. Giving up an organ should be the individual’s voluntary act and should not be influenced by monetary reward. Because the demand for organ transplantation far exceeds the supply, the debate on whether organs should be sold or not will always be a current and important issue. Indeed, the benefit – saving a life – is both rewarding and admirable. Nevertheless, it should not be forgotten that once money is involved the act of donating becomes less praiseworthy. Moreover, because of the kind of economy that exists in most parts of the world, the money involved will make people engage in questionable activities that might put their lives at risk. Works Cited Andre, Claire and Velasquez, Manuel. “Kidneys for Sale.” Markkula Center for Applied Ethics. Santa Clara University. n.d. Web. 6 December 2011. Bailey, Ronald. “The Case for Selling Human Organs.” Reason.com. 18 April 2001. Web. 6 December 2011. Daily Mail Reporter. “NY organ traffickers admits buying kidneys in Israel for $10,000… and selling them in U.S. for $120,000.” Mail Online. 28 October 2011. Web. 6 December 2011. Glassberg, Lauren. “Pennsylvania’s Test Program.” Debating Organ Donor Compensation. abcnews.go.com. 16 June 2002. Web. 6 December 2011. Handwerk, Brian. “Organ Shortage Fuels Illicit Trade in Human Parts.” National Geographic Ultimate Explorer. National Geographic. 16 January 2004. Web. 6 December 2011. “Japan: not enough donors.” Human Organs for sale. The New Internationalist.org. April 1998. Web. 6 December 2011. Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology. “Organ Transplants.” postnote. .231. (October 2004). Microsoft Word file. May, Theodore. “Organ trade endangers Egypt’s poorest.” Regions. Globalpost.com. 30 May 2010. Web. 6 December 2011. McNee, Marisa. “No-give, No-take Policy Would Ease Organ Shortage.” The Buffalo News. The Independent Institute. 5 May 2002. Web. 6 December 2011. Rasheed Abou-Alsamh. “Cabral warns: No more organs for sale in Philippines.” Arab News. 26 June 2009. Web. 6 December 2011. Rohter, Larry. “THE ORGAN TRADE: A Global Black Market; Tracking the Sale of a Kidney On a Path of Poverty and Hope.” The New York Times World. The New York Times. 23 May 2004. Web. 6 December 2011. Schatzki’ Stefan. “The First Kidney Transplant.” Medicine in American Art. American Journal of Roentgenology. 2003. Web. 5 December 2011. TED Case Studies. “India Kidney Trade.”n.d. Web. 6 December 2011. Read More