According to the United Network for Organ Sharing, Essays - Medicine

According to the United Network for Organ Sharing, Essays - Medicine According to the United Network for Organ Sharing, there are 119,709 people waiting for a transplant in the United States, out of those, 8,030 people die every year while waiting to receive an organ (United Network for Organ Sharing, 2015). The increasing global demand of organs is currently considered a major problem by many governments and the World Health Organization (WHO). The main concerns behind the increasing demand of organs are the low number of donors and the creation of black market networks. Many governments have moved towards better regulation of organ donations, but these efforts have had little influence on the major global " organ heavens " , where individuals from richer areas are able to buy organs from third world countries (Jafar, 2009). This essay will look into the black market of kidneys while focusing on the exploitation of third world countries and the mechanism to counter these illegal markets. In many countries, the demand of trans plants is way higher than the supply and availability of organs. In the United States, only 1/4 of the people in need receive a transplant. There are two ways in which a person can receive a transplant. The first one, where the organs of an individual are donated after his/her death; the second case relies on the donation of organs by individuals while they are alive, the most common organ donated is the kidney (United Network for Organ Sharing, 2015). Yet, the amount of post-mortem organs donated is way less than the demand, leading to the creation of illegal organ markets supplied by living individuals. The global black market of organs is fueled by the practice of transplant tourism. This term refers to individuals who travel to less privileged countries in order to get a transplant; it also involves any aspect relating to the commercialization, sale and purchase of organs (Shimazono, 2007). According to a survey conducted by the WHO in 98 countries in 2004, 66,000 ki dneys were transplanted in that year, while 10% of those were transplanted to individuals from developed countries who travelled overseas in order to get their transplants (The Lancet, 2007). Although we should consider that those people travelling for a transplant are just aiming to save and expand their lives, the practice of transplant tourism is contributing to the exploitation of thousands of individuals from the poorest countries of the world. In many cases, the information received by governments and organization is just the tip of the iceberg. In many countries, the lack of accountability and transparency contributes to the continuous practice of undocumented organ trafficking (Budiani-Saberi Delmonico, 2008). This poses a problem not only for those trying to seek for a solution, but more importantly for those that are at the risk of being drawn into the market. Inequalities of social and economic conditions is one of most alarming aspects of organ trafficking. This is because, those in poor countries who are part from the lowest classes of the society risk their lives in order to hold onto the economic scraps of the pyramid of organ trafficking. In many countries like Pakistan, Peru, India, Philippines, and China, networks of organ trafficking take advantage of individuals by making them sell their kidneys. In many situations, these individuals risk their lives as they undergo poor surgical operations and receive no recovery treatment. It is quite regular that " donors " pay with their health the consequences of poor surgical methods years after selling their kidneys (Jafar, 2009). In most cases, these multimillion dollar networks pay an insignificant amount between 1,000 - 10,000 USD to the " donors " , while they generate hundreds of thousands of dollars in profit. According to the WHO, the cost of a kidney transplant overseas can range between 60,000 - 100,000 USD (Shimazono, 2007). The discrepancy betw een these numbers show the inequality in profit distribution between those who are in the suffering front (donors) and those who are part of the network. Throughout this practice, there is one clear pattern in the donor-recipient relations of kidneys ' black market. Ric Esther Bienstock, director of " Tales From The Organ Trade " , documentary filmed in the Philippines, talked to CNN in 2014 about