Xenotransplantation Essay -- Medical Research Transplant Donor Essays

Xenotransplantation Physicians today are faced with a growing list of patients awaiting transplants for organs that have failed, but there are not enough donors to meet these needs. Countries all over the world have a â€Å"human organ shortage† and the waiting lists for organ transplants only seem to grow longer (Melo 427). In the United States 62,000 patients needed a kidney, liver, or pancreatic transplant in the year 2001. Xenotransplantation, which refers to the transplantation of organs, cells, or tissues from animal species into human beings, has been heralded as a promising technology that will help us save more lives and lessen the dire shortage of transplantable organs. Organs from pigs, goats, monkeys, chimpanzees, and baboons have been used in xenotransplant experiments conducted so far. It promises to be a good treatment option for patients with end-stage organ failure (Williams 12). The transplant surgery could be scheduled at the patient’s convenience rather than scheduling an emergency surgery as soon as the human donor is found. Patients would be able to receive transplants when they first need them rather than having to wait until a transplant is the only remaining option that can save their lives. When transplants are conducted earlier, the patient will be stronger and have a better chance of recovering. Xenotransplantation appears to have several advantages as a medical procedure, but like any medical procedure it is not without its risks. Before we embrace xenotransplantation as yet another boon of science, we need to consider the ethical dilemmas surrounding this medical technology. History of Xenotransplantation The concept of using animal organs in human beings is not a new one. On... ... Xenotransplantation.† Bioethics. 2001 Vol 15 Number5/6. Nelson, James Lindemann. â€Å"Transplantation through a Glass Darkly.† Hastings Center Report. Sept-Oct 1992: 6-8. [Online] http://online.sfsu.edu/~rone/GEessays/Transplantation.htm â€Å"The Ethical Implications of Xenotransplantation.† American Medical Association. CEJA Reports 2000-2002. [Online] http://www.ama-assn.org/ama/upload/mm/369/ceja_report_113.pdf Veatch, Robert M. The Basics of Bioethics. New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 2000. Williams, Rebecca D. â€Å"Organ Transplants from Animals.† FDA Consumer. June 1996, Vol 30 Issue 5. [Online] http://www.fda.gov/fdac/features/596_xeno.html Windsor, Roger G. â€Å"Spare Body Parts from Animals.† Spectrum: The Wholistic News Magazine. Mar-Apr 1997. â€Å"Xenotransplantation.† Natural Life. Jan-Feb 2000, Issue 71. [Online] http://www.life.ca/nl/71/xeno.html