How Much Is An Organ Worth?

 

Currently, some individuals purchase organs off the black market and use them for transplants. This poses a question: is it ethical to purchase an organ for transplant? A point to consider: the current wait time for a kidney transplant is 3-5 years, which may allow for individuals to worsen while waiting for a donation. This idea behind purchasing organs has led some people to travel to other countries outside of the US to obtain their transplant, however this practice of selling and purchasing organs is illegal in many countries.

Back to the main question: is this ethical, and should it be legal? Is there a better way than being forced to wait for an undetermined amount of time for an organ donation?

As for the possibility of selling and purchasing of organs, an argument for the legalization of this practice would be the autonomy of the individual. As a possible seller, if a patient is dying of some trauma that has no negative effects on their organ viability, I think it would be respecting their autonomy to give them the decision to sell their organs. Also, in respect to kidneys, of which humans only require one, it would be an autonomous decision to sell one. For the possible purchasers, this would respect their autonomy as well as beneficence (do good), as the ability to increase their personal health levels would be attainable through a secondary method.

On the other side of this cone, there are many possible negatives to an organ market. The organs would need to be properly collected in an ethical manner by trained professionals, and would also have to be checked for any possible ailments that could hurt a transplant candidate. Other possible issues could arise from extortion or forceable organ removal to obtain more money. All of these would violate non-malfeasance, and could result in injury to either party. This could also infringe on justice, as it would preferentially favor the rich who could afford said organs, although this also would mean the transplant list is shorter for those receiving donations.

My solution to the organ shortage problem is simpler. When obtaining a driver's license, make it so people may easily opt out of being a donor instead of having them opt in, as this would likely increase the number of donors, and therefore, organs available to those who need them.

 

Ambagtsheer, F., De Jong, J., Bramer, W. M., & Weimar, W. (2016). On patients who purchase organ transplants abroad. American Journal of Transplantation, 16(10), 2800–2815. https://doi.org/10.1111/ajt.13766