Poor people are vulnerable to abuse in many ways. Some are so desperate they’re persuaded to sell body parts, such as kidneys, which are in short supply for transplants.
Worldwide Shortage of Organs for Transplant
According to the World Health Organization (WHO) only 10 percent of people who need a new kidney get one. In a September 2004 report the WHO said that, “In Europe alone, there are currently 120,000 patients on dialysis treatment and about 40,000 people waiting for a kidney, according to a report last year by the European Parliamentary Assembly.
“It warned that the waiting list for a transplant, currently about three years, would increase to 10 years by 2010, and with it the death rate from the shortage of organs.”
Organ Trafficking Networks Feed Demand
WHO also estimates that one-fifth of the 70,000 kidneys that are transplanted every year come from the black market, in organ-trafficking networks that are widespread and growing.
Jane’s Information Group (March 5, 2008) says the business is “dominated by unscrupulous brokers and facilitated by inadequate national legislations, widespread corrupt practices, and a general lack of public awareness on the extent of the trade.”
Many of the organs have been “harvested” in places such as India, South Africa, China, and South and Central America, with or without the consent of the “donors.” And, of course, there’s plenty of money to be made. Sellers of kidneys are said to be paid about $2,500 to $3,000, and recipients pay anywhere from $100,000 to $200,000.
As Jane’s reports “China is known for harvesting and selling organs from executed prisoners…
“Trafficked organs are either sold domestically, or exported to be transplanted into patients from the U.S., Europe, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and especially Israel.”
Summit Held To Discuss Organ Trafficking
In April 2008, the Transplantation Society and the International Society of Nephrology held a summit of more than 150 representatives of scientific and medical bodies worldwide. The gathering was organized to address unethical practices related to transplants.
Practices include organ trafficking (the illicit sale of human organs), transplant commercialism (when an organ is treated as a commodity), and transplant tourism (when organs given to patients from outside a country undermine the country’s ability to provide organs for its own population).
One result of the meeting was The Declaration of Istanbul, which sets forth recommendations to help eliminate organ trafficking. The Declaration advises countries to start programs to prevent organ failure and provide organs to meet the transplant needs of its residents from donors within their own populations.
The declaration is the combined effort of representatives from 78 countries: many of them report serious health consequences and death of poor donors who are paid for their organs, says one of the document’s contributors, Dr. Edward H. Cole, a kidney specialist from the University of Toronto.
Demand could be Satisfied Locally
Thousands of people worldwide die waiting for a suitable donated organ, while thousands of others put their own health at risk by selling an organ for transplantation. In Western industrialized countries such as Canada the demand for organs for transplantation could be met if more people registered to donate their organs after death.
Public sentiment is generally in favour of the program but what happens in practice is somewhat different. On May 2, 2009, Vancouver Sun reporter Kelly Sinoski wrote an article, “Transplant Recipients Rally to Encourage Organ Donations,” on the subject. She reported that “While 85 percent of British Columbians say they support organ donation, only 16 percent are actually registered, BC Transplant spokesman Ken Donohue said.”
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