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December 1, 2008 9:50:17 AM CST

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organ harvesting

organ harvesting news stories

9 Stories

UN Official: Guerrillas Killed Serb Prisoners for Organs

Former UN war crimes prosecutor alleges organ-harvesting happened during 1999 war

Guardian (UK) Guardian (UK) Apr 12, 08 11:45 AM CDT
(Newser) - Kosovan guerrillas killed Serb prisoners and harvested their organs for profit during Balkan fighting nearly a decade ago, according to the former UN prosecutor for war crimes in Yugoslavia. Carla del Ponte alleges that guerrillas trucked 300 captured Serbs over the border to a makeshift clinic in Albania, removed their kidneys, then killed them later for other organs. More »

More about:  Kosovo • war crimes • Albania • Balkans • organ harvesting • Yugoslavia • Serbs • organ trafficking

Case Against Transplant Doc Raises Concern

Prosecution claims he killed for organs; others say technique to blame

New York Times New York Times Feb 27, 08 11:11 AM CST
(Newser) - Charges against a California surgeon for hastening the death of a disabled man so his organs could be harvested for transplants has advocates worried, the New York Times reports. At issue is whether Dr. Hootan Roozrokh ignored protocol in pursuit of organs for transplant or if he misused, or misunderstood, a less-often-used harvesting technique. More »

Poor Pakistanis Sell Kidneys to Rich Foreigners

Organ sales are still legal in Pakistan; prices are as low as $1,700

Chicago Tribune Chicago Tribune Aug 26, 07 2:41 PM CDT
(Newser) - In the village of Sultanpur More, Pakistan, hundreds of people have long purple scars in their sides from selling their kidneys—for as little as $1,700—to pay off debts and to make dowry payments, the Chicago Tribune reports.  There are only a few countries that don't prohibit organ sales, and business here has increased since China banned them last year. More »

More about:  Pakistan • poverty • organ donor • transplant • organ harvesting • kidney transplant • kidney • organ selling

Transplant Doc Accused of Quickening Patient's Death

Organ-donation controversy erupts

Los Angeles Times Los Angeles Times Jul 31, 07 5:56 PM CDT
(Newser) - A San Francisco surgeon is facing unprecedented felony charges of accelerating the death of a 25-year-old disabled man to harvest his organs for transplant. The doctor denies the charges that he acted without a legitimate medical purpose, the LA Times reports, but the controversy is bad news for transplant doctors nationwide. More »

More about:  doctor • disability • organ donor • patient • transplant • organ harvesting • medical malpractice • surgeon • Hootan Roozrokh

Kidney Sales Brisk On India's Black Market

Desperate tsunami survivors
sacrificing their kidneys, getting ripped off by doctors and dealers

Wired Wired May 9, 07 10:58 AM CDT
(Newser) - Women impoverished by the catastrophic tsunami of 2004 are selling their kidneys on India's lucrative black market in ever increasing numbers. Wired reports on an international organ-donor scandal in which desperate donors are often ripped off by unscrupulous doctors and dealers who take the organs and keep the money. More »

More about:  India • women • organ donor • black market • organ harvesting • kidney • organ trafficking

Docs Accused Of Hurrying Death To Harvest Organs

"They were waiting like vultures,"
the patient's sister said

Los Angeles Times Los Angeles Times Apr 12, 07 11:24 AM CDT
(Newser) - A 47-year-old man was wrongly declared brain dead by two doctors apparently eager to harvest his organs, reports the LA Times . "They were waiting like vultures, so they could scoop them up," says the patient’s daughter, Melanie Sanchez. A third doctor determined that her father, who had suffered a catastrophic brain hemorrhage, was not dead. More »

More about:  health • science • doctor • hospitals • patients • organ donor • transplant • organ harvesting • organs

China Has Change of Heart On Transplants

Puts a stop to lucrative transplant tourism

Wall Street Journal Wall Street Journal Apr 6, 07 4:40 PM CDT
(Newser) - China is rethinking a major medical cash cow: providing organ transplants for Westerners on overcrowded waiting lists at home. "Transplant tourism" has been a particularly popular option in Israel, where insurers are required to pony up  for overseas operations. But health officials recently ruled that organs should not be given to foreigners when not enough are available for Chinese citizens. More »

More about:  China • Israel • health • organ transplants • transplant • organ harvesting • waiting list

States Rewrite Organ-Donation Laws

New revision would make it easier to obtain organs

Washington Post Washington Post Apr 4, 07 11:26 AM CDT
(Newser) - Doctors will be able to take organs from potential donors in more sticky situations, under revisions to state laws on the boards in more than 24 states. Model legislation that's already passed in four states clarifies how to handle ethically complex decisions, helping to alleviate the chronic shortage of kidneys and other organs, the Washington Post reports. More »

More about:  health • law • organ donor • patient • state governments • will • organ harvesting

Beijing Ban Spurs Organ Shortage

China cleans up for Olympics—and Korean kidney patients feel the pinch

Der Spiegel Der Spiegel Mar 29, 07 11:14 AM CDT
(Newser) - South Korea has a kidney shortage, and the Beijing Olympics are to blame, Der Spiegel reports. China, attempting to clean up its human rights reputation in preparation the 2008 games, has banned organ trafficking and cut down on the state executions that used to create supply. Now countries that used to rely on this most controversial of Chinese exports are feeling the pinch. More »

More about:  China • South Korea • human rights • Olympic Games • organ harvesting • waiting list

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