Investigation of Organ Trafficking in India
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Mentor Information
Dr. Holly Donahue Singh
Description
The goal of our research was to determine the state of organ transplantation and trafficking in India and identify which populations are most susceptible to victimization by such schemes. We found that demand for organ transplantation in India far exceeds supply, with the most common transplanted organ being the kidney. While 11,000 kidney transplantations are performed per year, more than 200,000 are unaddressed, a disparity due in part to the lack of utilization of cadavers as a tissue source because of societal stigma. If cadaver use for organ transplantation is upregulated to just 2 cadavers per million people in India, the incidence of live organ transplantation could decrease significantly. The illicit organ trafficking schemes were intended to be eliminated by the Transplantation of Organ and Tissues Act of 1994, but ambiguous wording in a subclause led to blatant misconduct and rise in live transplantation operations by private corporations. Most illegal organ transplantation procedures operate under the guise of legitimate corporate leadership, led by eminent physicians using their prestigious positions and bribery as a bulwark against scrutiny to exploit poor populations through transplantation. The tissues are exported to foreign countries, but the middleman benefits far more than the donor or recipient. Lastly, the populations most susceptible to organ trafficking are women from poor socioeconomic classes who are forced to shoulder the burden of the family finances and sell organs to fulfill debt, which only suffices as a temporary remedy, restarting the cycle.
Investigation of Organ Trafficking in India
The goal of our research was to determine the state of organ transplantation and trafficking in India and identify which populations are most susceptible to victimization by such schemes. We found that demand for organ transplantation in India far exceeds supply, with the most common transplanted organ being the kidney. While 11,000 kidney transplantations are performed per year, more than 200,000 are unaddressed, a disparity due in part to the lack of utilization of cadavers as a tissue source because of societal stigma. If cadaver use for organ transplantation is upregulated to just 2 cadavers per million people in India, the incidence of live organ transplantation could decrease significantly. The illicit organ trafficking schemes were intended to be eliminated by the Transplantation of Organ and Tissues Act of 1994, but ambiguous wording in a subclause led to blatant misconduct and rise in live transplantation operations by private corporations. Most illegal organ transplantation procedures operate under the guise of legitimate corporate leadership, led by eminent physicians using their prestigious positions and bribery as a bulwark against scrutiny to exploit poor populations through transplantation. The tissues are exported to foreign countries, but the middleman benefits far more than the donor or recipient. Lastly, the populations most susceptible to organ trafficking are women from poor socioeconomic classes who are forced to shoulder the burden of the family finances and sell organs to fulfill debt, which only suffices as a temporary remedy, restarting the cycle.
