Xenotransplantation : the solution to the shortage of human organs for transplantation

The transplantation of human organs is now an accepted medical procedure. However, the success of human organ transplantation is tempered by the insufficient organs available to satisfy demand. Patients are dying while waiting a suitable organ. This shortage of transplantable organs is the major factor limiting human organ transplantation. Various strategies and practices have been proposed (and, in some cases, implemented) to overcome this shortage. This paper provides a sociological analysis of one of the more prominent of these emerging practices, that of xenotransplantation. The transplantation of animal organs and tissues into humans raises a number of social, ethical, moral, and political issues, many of which have yet to be fully resolved. While the practice has the potential to increase the number of organs available for transplantation, its possible introduction compels us to reconsider our lives, our relationship with animals, and what it means to be human.