British woman asks for kidney online

[Clark]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/8728232/British-woman-asks-for-kidney-online.html

British woman asks for kidney online
A British woman is set to become the first to receive a kidney after advertising for a donor on an American website.
By Martin Beckford

Saira Khan, 37, made her plea through a charity that finds online “Good Samaritans” who want to give organs to people they feel empathy towards.
Unlike “transplant tourists” who pay for trafficked organs in poorer countries, she will not break the law as no money or coercion will be involved in her life-saving operation.
The authorities believe it could lead to increasing number of people going online to look for altruistic organ donors rather than waiting on NHS lists or travelling abroad for a risky and illegal transplant.
An estimated three people die every day in Britain while waiting for an organ transplant. Even though a third of the population is on the donor register, only those who die in hospital can usually have their kidneys, hearts or lungs used while proposals to pay donors or introduce an “opt-out” policy for the whole population have met resistance.
Mrs Khan, a mother of three, has had kidney disease for 10 years and is on a waiting list to receive a replacement organ as her husband, Omar, is not a suitable donor match.
But she hopes to see her health improve more quickly by advertising for a living donor through the Flood Sisters Kidney Foundation of America, which puts adverts on websites to match patients with donors who are moved by their plight.
An American woman, Dana Klejment, is said to have decided to offer one of her kidneys to a British woman she does not know so that her children do not have to grow up without her.
It is thought to be the first time a British patient has found a “directed” donor – one who wants to give a specific individual an organ rather than donating it to a stranger.
If Mrs Khan can find an NHS hospital that will carry out the transplant operation, an independent assessor from the Human Tissue Authority will then decide whether or not to approve it.
Vicky Marshment, Head of Performance at the watchdog, said: “The Human Tissue Act allows directed donations between people who don’t have a genetic or established emotional relationship, as long as there is no duress or reward.
“So although this has not been explored in the UK, the law allows a potential donor to choose the person they want to donate to, even if they don’t have an established relationship. The HTA will assess donations that fall into this category on a case-by-case basis.”