Britons being sold illegal kidneys for surgery in Sri Lanka

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http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/srilanka/10442714/Britons-being-sold-illegal-kidneys-for-surgery-in-Sri-Lanka.html

Britons being sold illegal kidneys for surgery in Sri Lanka
Patients awaiting kidney transplants in the UK are being offered illegal organs which are then used in operations at a Ski Lankan hospital
By Miranda Prynne

British patients waiting for organ transplants are being offered surgery using illegally trafficked kidneys at a Government-controlled hospital in Sri Lanka, it has been claimed.
The claims emerged the same week as David Cameron and the Prince of Wales were due to join world leaders for the Commonwealth Summit in the country.
The organs are on sale for tens of thousands of pounds with promises to arrange surgery at the hospital in Colombo, which has the brother of the Sri Lankan president as chairman of its board.
A journalist working for the Times newspaper posed as a relative of a Briton seeking a kidney transplant and claims to have been offered an organ originating either from India or the UK.
The agreement took place at a meeting with organ “facilitator”, Antonio Kanickaraj, in Bangalore, India.
He said the transplant operation would take place at Lanka Hospital, which would charge $40,000 (£25,000) for the surgery.
The recipient would then pay an additional $35,000 to the organ donor.
To avoid any legal barriers to surgery, the donor would claim the kidney was being offered for free on humanitarian grounds.
In a secret recording, Mr Kanickaraj, who worked for Mediease, in Bangalore, which provides medical tourism services for international patients, said: “There are some things that you have to keep confidential like the compensation that you will be giving to the donor.
“That’s the one thing that you have to keep [quiet].”
The allegations will fuel concerns about a rising black market trade in human organs in many parts of the world, including South Asia.
There is no suggestion the hospital or other people working for Mediease are guilty of any wrongdoing.
Mr Kanickaraj said he would claim a commission fee for arranging the deal.

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http://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/news/fears-of-donor-shortage-as-kidneys-sold-on-black-market-142319n.22681121

Fears of donor shortage as kidneys sold on black market
Caroline Wilson

AN investigation which suggests transplant ­patients could be resorting to illegally trafficked kidneys, highlights the "tragedy" of donor shortages, according to campaigners.

A probe found patients in the UK were being offered kidneys by an international organ dealer at a government controlled hospital for £40,000 payments.

The Lanka Hospitals Corporation in Colombo is ­being recommended to ­patients as a suitable place to receive an organ purchased on the black market.

A transplant using an ­organ from a volunteer ­donor is legitimate but buying and selling human organs is banned by international law.

Despite being illegal, ­human organ trafficking is widespread in many parts of the world, including South Asia.

Glasgow MSP Drew King and BMA Scotland said the recent investigation highlighted the need to do more to increase the pool of donors in the UK to help avoid patients resorting to such measures. Both support a move to an opt-out transplant system in Scotland, for which the Evening Times has been campaigning .

More than half of the Scottish population are not on the current opt-in donor register.

There are 10,000 patients who need new organs - most commonly livers, kidneys and hearts - and three die each day while on waiting lists.

Glasgow Labour MSP Drew King said: "This is a disturbing case but at its most basic it underlines the tragedy faced by those in urgent need of an organ transplant for whom no ­donor can be identified."

Dr Sue Robertson, member of the BMA's Scottish Council and a kidney doctor, said: "The BMA believes that organ donation should be a gift, freely and voluntarily given, and does not support incentives or direct payment for donation.

"We believe that one of the best ways to increase ­organ donation is to move to a system of presumed consent.

"Public support for such a change is already growing but we need to continue to raise awareness and encourage public debate."

The Evening Times' Opt for Life campaign was given a boost last month after our petition was continued at the Scottish Parliament ­following a letter from MSP Drew Smith.

MSPs were eager to allow the petition more time to convince the Scottish ­Government that a change in the law in Scotland will save more lives.

The Petitions Committee has now invited ministers from the Welsh Government to give evidence on the process of moving to their opt out system, the first country in the UK to do so.

The Scottish Government is waiting to have the opportunity to assess the Welsh system before changing the law.

Instead it is running a campaign to increase the organ donor pool by encouraging more people to ­register as donors.