Organ and tissue donation is life-saving and life transforming medical process wherein organs and tissues were removed from a donor and transplant them to a recipient who is very ill from organ failure. It is said that one organ can save up to 10 people and may improve the lives of thousands more (Australian Red Cross Blood Service, 2011). Most of the donated organs and tissues came from people who already died but in some cases, a living person can donate organs such as kidneys, heart, liver, pancreas, intestines, lungs and some tissues such as skin, bone, bone marrow and cornea (Health Resources and Services Administration, 2013) as well as blood, stem cells, and platelets (Taranto, 2012). Over 100,000 US citizens are waiting for an organ donation but unfortunately for many of them, they would not be receiving any calls for a suitable donor nor a second chance at life (Mayo Clinic). This research will tackle the history of organ donation and transplantations and its likely contributions for future medical advancements. 2. History of Organ Transplants 2.1 Early Ancient History The first organ transplants can be traced back to the ancient times where Ancient Greeks, Romans and Chinese myths features accounts of transplants accomplished by gods and healers which involves cadavers and animals though these claims were thought to be fictitious, Indian doctors may likely begun transplanting skin from one part of the body to another to repair wounds and burns around 800 B.C. It is during the 16th Century that Italian surgeon Gasparo Tagliacozzi, also referred to as the father of plastic surgery performed reconstruction of noses and ears by transplanting the patient’s own skin tissues from his arm to the patient’s nose and ears. He dis... ... middle of paper ... ...rom History in the Headlines Website: http://www.history.com/news/organ-transplants-a-brief-history Robson, N. (2010) Organ Transplants: an analysis of ethical, social and religious issues. Retrieved February 6, 2014 from cogprints.org/8083/1/Organ%20transplants.pdf Taranto, S. (16 July, 2012) Organ Donations and Transplantation Fact Sheet. Retrieved from the Office of Women’s Health, US Department of Health and Human Services Website: http://womenshealth.gov/publications/our-publications/fact-sheet/organ-donation.html#h Troug, R.D., Miller, F.G., and Halpern, S.D. (2013) The Dead-Donor Rule and the future of Organ Donation. N Engl J Med 2013; 369:1287-1289 Watson, C.J.E. and Dark, J.H. (2012) Organ Transplantation: Historical Perspective and Current Practice. British Journal of Anaesthesia. Retrieved from http://bja.oxfordjournals.org/content/108/suppl_1/i29.full
First of all, we can assess issues concerning the donor. For example, is it ever ethically acceptable to weaken one person’s body to benefit another? It has to be said that the practiced procedures are not conducted in the safest of ways, which can lead to complications for both donors and recipients (Delmonico 1416). There are also questions concerning of informed consent: involved donors are not always properly informed about the procedure and are certainly not always competent to the point of fully grasping the situation (Greenberg 240). Moral dilemmas arise for the organ recipient as well. For instance, how is it morally justifiable to seek and purchase organs in foreign countries? Is it morally acceptable to put oneself in a dangerous situation in order to receive a new organ? Some serious safety issues are neglected in such transactions since the procedures sometimes take place in unregulated clinics (Shimazono 959). There is also the concept of right to health involved in this case (Loriggio). Does someone’s right to health have more value than someone else’s? Does having more money than someone else put your rights above theirs? All of these questions have critical consequences when put into the context of transplant tourism and the foreign organ trade. The answers to these questions are all taken into account when answering if it is morally justifiable to purchase
Thesis: I will explain the history of organ transplants, starting with ancient ideas before modern science until the 21st century.
The term “medical transplant” is referred to the process of organ donation. In current modern trends, the world is moving towards the fifth generation. The new innovative medical techniques have enabled the people to reform from severe diseases. The phenomenon of organ donation and transplant is based on two primary persons. It involves surgical process to remove a body organ and tissue form from donor and fitting it into the body of recipient. In addition, the transplant that is performed within same body is called auto graft. Medical transplant that is performed in between to different bodies of same species is called allografts (Hewitt, 2008). The main reason of medical transplantation and organ donation is any injury and disease which prohibit the organ to work in proper condition.
In “Death’s Waiting List”, Sally Satel presents a strong and compelling argument for the implementation of changes to the organ donation system. The author addresses a shortage of organ donations due to the current donation system in the United States, which puts stipulations on the conditions surrounding the donation. She provides ideas to positively affect the system and increase organ donations.
Wolfe, R., Merion, R., Roys, E., & Port, F. (2009). Trends in Organ Donation and Transplantation in the United States, 1998-2007. American Journal of Transplantation , 9, 869-878.
It is clear that a large demand for organs exists. People in need of organ donations are transferred to an orderly list. Ordinarily, U.S. institutions have an unprofitable system which provides organs through a list of individuals with the highest needs; however, these organs may never come. A list is
The human body; it starts off as a single cell, and grows into a complex machine made of seventy eight distinct organs, two hundred and six bones, and millions of nerves that all communicate with each other to regulate body processes and keep the machine alive and healthy. This seemingly perfect system undergoes countless attacks every day, and manages to recover from most, although occasionally, it can not. Diseases such as Cystic Fibrosis and Coronary Artery Disease, or abnormalities and defects such as biliary atresia, can all disrupt the function of human organs (“Transplant Australia”, n.d ). Thankfully, through radical advancements in modern medicine, organ transplants are a safe and highly viable option to restore the human body’s perfect harmony. No matter the reason for organ failure, once it occurs, the patient’s journey to receiving a new organ begins. Through the matching of organs, the process and the complications that come with it, the ethical issues, and trials of new advancements, the journey is a long one.
Human organ transplantation is known as the removal of a living tissue or organ from one individual by surgical operation, and it is placed into another individual, with the aim of improving the health of the recipient. It was started in the 1930s. In 1933, human renal graft was tried out by Voronoy, a Russian scientist, and it has vastly advanced since then. Human organ transplant is now viewed as treatment rather than experiments as they can now be performed more safely. This has been seen by the remarkable improvement on the medical care of patients with organ failures i.e heart disease, cirrhosis and renal failure.
Throughout history physicians have faced numerous ethical dilemmas and as medical knowledge and technology have increased so has the number of these dilemmas. Organ transplants are a subject that many individuals do not think about until they or a family member face the possibility of requiring one. Within clinical ethics the subject of organ transplants and the extent to which an individual should go to obtain one remains highly contentious. Should individuals be allowed to advertise or pay for organs? Society today allows those who can afford to pay for services the ability to obtain whatever they need or want while those who cannot afford to pay do without. By allowing individuals to shop for organs the medical profession’s ethical belief in equal medical care for every individual regardless of their ability to pay for the service is severely violated (Caplan, 2004).
When viewing organ donation from a moral standpoint we come across many different views depending on the ethical theory. The controversy lies between what is the underlying value and what act is right or wrong. Deciding what is best for both parties and acting out of virtue and not selfishness is another debatable belief. Viewing Kant and Utilitarianism theories we can determine what they would have thought on organ donation. Although it seems judicious, there are professionals who seek the attention to be famous and the first to accomplish something. Although we are responsible for ourselves and our children, the motives of a professional can seem genuine when we are in desperate times which in fact are the opposite. When faced with a decision about our or our children’s life and well being we may be a little naïve. The decisions the patients who were essentially guinea pigs for the first transplants and organ donation saw no other options since they were dying anyways. Although these doctors saw this as an opportunity to be the first one to do this and be famous they also helped further our medical technology. The debate is if they did it with all good ethical reasoning. Of course they had to do it on someone and preying upon the sick and dying was their only choice. Therefore we are responsible for our own health but when it is compromised the decisions we make can also be compromised.
The first successful transplantation between two humans was a corneal transplant, done by an Austrian ophthalmologist (Mantel, 2011). After this successful procedure, the corneal transplant became a routine operation. Corneas have no blood vessels in them, which classifies them as non-vascularized, which is why they were so successful and became routine. When something is non-vascularized it means they are not connected to the blood and lymphatic system which in turn allows them not to be destroyed as foreign by the immune system (Mantel, 2011). As transplantations progressed, more surgeons started to transplant vascularized organs. After many failed attempts and organ rejection, in 1954 a Boston surgeon named Joseph Murray transplanted a kidney from one identical
Organ Transplants: A Brief History (21 February, 2012) Retrieved from History in the Headlines Website: http://www.history.com/news/organ-transplants-a-brief-history
Zimmerman, M. A., Wachs, M., Bak, T., & Kam, I. (n.d.). The History of Liver Transplantation
One of the most important and prevalent issues in healthcare discussed nowadays is the concern of the organ donation shortage. As the topic of organ donation shortages continues to be a growing problem, the government and many hospitals are also increasingly trying to find ways to improve the number of organ donations. In the United States alone, at least 6000 patients die each year while on waiting lists for new organs (Petersen & Lippert-Rasmussen, 2011). Although thousands of transplant candidates die from end-stage diseases of vital organs while waiting for a suitable organ, only a fraction of eligible organ donors actually donate. Hence, the stark discrepancy in transplantable organ supply and demand is one of the reasons that exacerbate this organ donation shortage (Parker, Winslade, & Paine, 2002). In the past, many people sought the supply of transplantable organs from cadaver donors. However, when many ethical issues arose about how to determine whether someone is truly dead by either cardiopulmonary or neurological conditions (Tong, 2007), many healthcare professionals and transplant candidates switched their focus on obtaining transplantable organs from living donors instead. As a result, in 2001, the number of living donors surpassed the number of cadaver donors for the first time (Tong, 2007).
Organ transplantation is apperceived as one of the most prehending achievements for preserving life in medical history. This procedure provides a means of giving life to patience’s who suffer from terminal organ failure, which requires the participation of individuals; living or deceased, to donate their organs for the more preponderant good of society.