Animal-to-Human Transplants: the Ethics of Xenotransplantation
Introduction
Transplants save thousands of lives every year, but there are not enough human organs donated for everybody who needs them. This shortage has led scientists to search for new ways to help patients needing transplants. Xenotransplantation – the transplantation of organs from animals into humans – is a potential solution. Recent scientific developments may mean that the problem of rejection of tissue transplanted between species can be overcome.
However, xenotransplantation raises complex ethical and safety issues which demand resolution. A Working Party was set up to examine these questions, and a Report was published in March 1996.
The Report considered concerns such as:
- is it ethical to use animals to provide ‘spare parts’ for humans?
- is it ethical to produce genetically modified pigs containing human genes?
- how can any animal suffering be minimised?
- will animal diseases be passed onto human beings?
- how can early patients be protected?
- could the NHS afford animal-to-human transplants?
The Report gave cautious approval to xenotransplantation, recommending that development of animal-to-human transplants should continue, subject to rigorous regulation. The Report called on the Government to establish an Advisory Committee on Xenotransplantation to regulate developments. Following a similar conclusion by a Government Inquiry chaired by Professor Ian Kennedy, the UK Xenotransplantation Interim Regulatory Authority (UKXIRA) has since been established.
Last Updated Tue, 8 August 2006