By Kaitlyn Schaeffer

The great demand for organs worldwide has many serious consequences. Chief among them is the creation of an organ black market; as of 2014, more than 27 million people have been killed for or forced into giving up their organs.
In India, instances of black market organ trafficking are skyrocketing. Vulnerable populations, such as children and the homeless, are the most frequent targets. While sometimes individuals survive these extractions, …

By Noushaba T. Rashid

The Saudi Gazette recently reported from Dammam that for the past 2 years, as many as 410 Saudis have turned to black market organs, mainly kidneys, for illegal transportation.
Dr. Faisal Shaheen, the director of the Saudi Center for Organ Transplants (SCOT) states that 220 Saudis bought organs for transplants from several markets, including Pakistan, China and Egypt in 2013. 190 other Saudis did the same in 2012 …

By Marc Beuttler

Members of the Scottish parliament and other leaders are calling on the Scottish government to switch to an opt-out system of organ donation. In response to these calls for change, the British Medical Association, the British Heart Foundation and the Kidney Federation, among others met on April 22, at the Scottish parliament to discuss implementation of an opt-out system.
The Scottish Government originally decided to wait for an evaluation …

By Zoe Martina Siegel

95 percent of Americans subscribe to believing in organ donation; however, only 40 percent of qualified donors actually register. Dr. Jason T. Siegel, PhD, a lead researcher of Claremont Graduate University, has found that there is a significant difference between people who feel strongly about organ donation and people who feel strongly about signing up as a donor. Why is there a large variance between the attitudes …

By Kaitlyn Schaeffer

Two new studies in the most recent edition of The Lancet suggest progress in the transplantation of lab-grown organs. “They both show that by using fairly simple tissue engineering techniques, you can get real tissue forming where it’s supposed to,” said Dr. Margin Birchall of University College London. The simple engineering methods utilized by both studies can be applied to grow other organs, such as the esophagus, bowels, …

By Kayla Santos

Using stem cells, scientists at London’s Royal Free hospital have been able to create body parts including noses, ears and even blood vessels. The organs have even been used in replacement surgeries for a small number of patients so far. Scaffolds for the organs are made from a type of polymer material; the stem cells from the patient are grown in lab and then placed on the scaffold. …

By Juan Duran

In this article, Public health investigators report on a case involving a kidney transplant recipient who contracted rabies after transplantation from an undetected infected donor. A novel approach using social media to map the transmission of the disease was used to identify other potentially infected individuals.
An unnamed organ recipient from Maryland, who passed away in 2013 due to the rabies virus, was one of three individuals to …

By Julie Killian

About ninety percent of people in the United States are in support of organ and tissue donations, but only thirty percent are thoroughly familiar with the process it takes to become a donor. Every 11 minutes, another person is placed on the waiting list for organ transplantation in the United States. Over 117,000 individuals are in need of either an organ or a tissue transplant. To help with …

By Kaitlyn Schaeffer

Legend has it that Avicenna, the Iranian physician and philosopher, was the first person to suture nerves together.
Today, Iran ranks first in kidney transplantation in the Middle East, and ranks fourth in organ transplantation in the world.
Every year Iran carries out 2500 kidney transplants, 500 liver transplants, 80 heart transplants, 15-20 lung transplants, and 20 pancreatic transplants. Ever since developing the technology necessary for harvesting organs and performing …

By Kaitlyn Schaeffer

State Senator Don White, representing Pennsylvania’s 41st District, recently introduced two pieces of legislation that he hopes will lead to increases in organ donation in his state.
Senate Bill 1305 would alter identification card and driver’s license applications in a subtle but substantive way. The state is legally required to ask individuals whether they wish to have organ donor designation printed on their driver’s licenses, but this new legislation …