Stranger donors: a key link in transplant chains

Prog Transplant. 2010 Dec;20(4):366-71. doi: 10.1177/152692481002000410.

Abstract

Living donation to strangers is a complex issue that has caused some transplant centers to ban the practice altogether. Most prominent of the troublesome issues is the common source of these donors; namely, the Internet. These "stranger donors," however, are critical to both paired kidney transplants and chain kidney transplants. This article presents the ethical complexities of donors in these transplant arrangements and offers 2 case examples from our facility. Rigorous donor screening and informed consent processes are crucial, and together they help make transplant pairs and chains ethically feasible.

Publication types

  • Case Reports

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Altruism
  • Blood Group Incompatibility
  • Directed Tissue Donation* / ethics
  • Directed Tissue Donation* / statistics & numerical data
  • Donor Selection* / ethics
  • Donor Selection* / organization & administration
  • Humans
  • Informed Consent / ethics
  • Informed Consent / statistics & numerical data
  • Internet* / ethics
  • Internet* / organization & administration
  • Kidney Transplantation* / ethics
  • Kidney Transplantation* / methods
  • Kidney Transplantation* / statistics & numerical data
  • Living Donors* / ethics
  • Living Donors* / statistics & numerical data
  • Male
  • Tissue and Organ Procurement* / ethics
  • Tissue and Organ Procurement* / organization & administration
  • United States