Commercialization of Organ Transplants (Essay Sample)

Commercialization of Organ Transplants
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Commercialization of Organ Transplants
Globally, there is a growing shortage of human organs meant for donation. In this view, human cells and tissues have increasingly become economically and commercially viable for biotechnological research. The use of human organs have over the recent past outstripped the existing legal frameworks meant to check it and has thus led to varied concerns with regard to use of tissues and organs from humans after postmortems in Australia and England. Nonetheless, black markets for the sale of human tissues and organs. It is these measures that prompt the need to have structures and an ethical discourse to stamp authority and checks on the developments of the business CITATION JCh05 \l 1033 (J, 2005).
This paper articulates the various ethical concerns that arise from the systems that consent to organ donation and that have been recognized and adopted in various jurisdictions. Critical to this is the debate as to whether an individual reserves the right of ownership to property. Of concern is the question as to whether or not an individual is entitled to having property rights over their body and by an extension, if an individual reserves the right to own their body parts in the event that they die. This paper gives an insight over the high stake of commercialization of organs supply and the effects of the business CITATION Pet06 \l 1033 (Petechuk, 2006).
The ethical debates with regard to whether or not human organs, transplants should be traded continues to elicit varied reactions in the public domain. In a twist, it is vied in some quarters that these organs are spare parts. Until 1962, no successful transplants occurred. This meant that the incompatibility factor which sometimes meant death was imminent. In the present transplantation practice, there is a huge disparity between the total number of organs donated and those needed for transplantation. For instance, in New Zealand, close to four hundred patients would be queuing for kidney transplant waiting for the arrival of the same. Several other people would be lined up for other tissue transplants such as bone, skin, corneas and heart valves CITATION Blu89 \l 1033 (Blumstein & Sloan, 1989).
It is noteworthy that for one to donate any parts, they must firstly be subjected to death in an intensive care unit and the brain dead too. It is not a secret that many people need organs more than can be provided. Regrettably, man y healthy organs are either cremated or buried.
There is a common belief that a State should step up to help facilitate donation of organs in order that such things as wastage of these parts are controlled given the fact the parts are of high value. The arguments behind the donation is that humans are born to families and hence are a commodity of the community hence the community reserves the right to have them. In the event that the families of the deceased refuse to have the organs of the deceased donated based on moral grounds, then such decisions can be overridden by law. This is however possible by allowing the medical professionals to remove cadaver organs from the body of the deceased on a routinely manner. This is possible under the protection of the law and hence need not to seek opinion or consent form the families nor from the deceased before their death CITATION Kan05 \l 1033 (Kanniyakonil, 2005).
In the event that the belief of organ donation is deemed a desirable and noble societal aim, then in case altruism is not sufficient to beat the threshold then it is justified to compensate the deceased families for donating the organs. Otherwise, it may also hold that arrangements are made to have the organs donated after their death with a return benefit in the course of their lives CITATION JCh05 \l 1033 (J, 2005).
In New Zealand, Human Tissue Act on of 1964 provides that in the event of an individual having made a particular decision to have his or her organs removed for a particular use, then the person lawfully in possession of the said organs reserves the right to have the parts and my authorize the removal of the same to the effect of the request CITATION JCh05 \l 1033 (J, 2005).
It is noteworthy that blood, kidneys and bone marrows are lifetime donations and should not be compared to the traditionally harvested donations form the dead such as lungs, heart and liver. Over the recent past, the numbers of kidney bequests from alive but unrelated donor have significantly shot up. This cuts across the recipient’s spouses, friends and acquaintances or even from unfamil...