WHO urges RP to regulate organ trade
by DAVID DIZON, abs-cbnNEWS.com | 09/24/2008 6:00 PM
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The World Health Organization (WHO) on Wednesday said the Philippine government should regulate the continuous "sale" of kidneys and other organs for transplants.
Peter Cordingley, spokesman of the WHO Western Pacific Region office, said leaving the organ trade to the private sector would lead to abuse of potential donors who are usually from the lower socioeconomic classes.
"Organ transplant service is one of the building blocks of modern public health, but it has to be done by the government. It has to be regulated. It should not be left in the hands of the private sector who will do it for profit," Cordingley told abs-cbnNEWS.com.
Cordingley admitted that while WHO supports equal access to health care regardless of socioeconomic class, it is a reality that not everyone can afford to have an organ transplant. He said the trading of organs by poor citizens to be bought by rich patients is a reality in many countries, not just in the Philippines.
He also noted that the rise in inflation could lead to more people selling their kidneys in order to provide for their families.
"It's a trade. It's an arrangement that makes the WHO very, very uncomfortable. If the poor are making themselves more unwell in order to make the rich well, it is completely against our mission statement," he said.
In order to combat this, he said the government should impose laws that would regulate organ donations. He also added that the government promote voluntary organ donation among citizens to remove the illegal trade in organs.
"Our stand is, if you are prepared to receive an organ, then you should be prepared to give an organ. We believe that there are enough organs out there for all public health needs if people actually donate their organs," he said.
WHO guide
The WHO guiding principles on human organ transplantation specifically bans the trading of human body parts through commercial transactions, including prohibitions on giving or receiving payment for organs and advertising the need for or availability of organs, with a view to offering or seeking payment.
The WHO prohibits health professionals from engaging in organ transplant procedures if they have reason to believe that the organs concerned have been the subject of commercial transactions.
It also prohibits any person or facility involved in organ transplantation procedures to receive any payment that exceeds a justifiable fee for the services rendered.
The Philippine Society of Nephrology has warned that the Philippines has become a world “hotspot” for human organ trafficking. Based on the group’s research, Filipino donors are paid P100,000 to P150,000 (approximately $2,300-$3,440) for their kidneys.
Deceased donors
Dr. Reynaldo Lesaca, chief of the National Kidney Transplant Institute's (NKTI) Human Organ Preservation Effort office, earlier batted for a wider information campaign for deceased organ donation, which is provided for under Republic Act 7170 or the Organ Donation Act of 1991.
Under RA 7170, organ donors can donate their organs once they are declared medically and legally-dead. Lesaca said this includes brain dead patients who only continue to live because of various apparatus that allow his other organs to function.
He said strengthening the Organ Donation Act would mean closer coordination with hospitals to ensure that recently deceased organ donors are immediately brought to transplant centers for operation.
He said that in NKTI, only five to 10 percent of total kidney transplants are sourced from cadavers while the remaining 90 to 95 percent are from living donors.
