Ethical dilemma due to man's kidney transplant

[okarol]

Ethical dilemma due to man's kidney transplant

Shanghai Daily, March 17, 2011

A hospital in southern China will discuss whether to transplant a kidney from a mentally-disabled man to save his ailing elder brother as it might be against the donor's will.

Doctors at the No.2 People's Hospital in Guangdong Province said the operation may have harmful aftereffects on a donor's health and must be approved by the man personally. However, 30-year-old Gu Xinying was unable to express himself due to his mental condition, reported Guangzhou Daily yesterday.

Gu Xinying's brother, Gu Xincheng, who was diagnosed with uremia and is in desperate need of a functioning kidney, insisted all family members including Xinying agreed on the donation though he couldn't express it.

The 35-year-old man fell ill last December. He had to quit his job to receive treatment, but so far had no sign of recovery. The family consisting of parents and their four sons made the decision that Gu's younger brother, who was single, give his kidney to Gu Xincheng, the main breadwinner for his family

"My father is too old for transplant. My other two brothers married and have children. Gu Xinying is my last hope," the man said. He said their mother proposed the plan and ordered them to take care of Gu Xinying after the surgery.

His woman had a relapse of cancer last month, and she gave up on treatment because "the family could only afford one patient's -medical bills."

When Gu Xincheng was taken to the hospital two months ago, the family's request for an operation was turned down.

Meng Shandong, a surgeon in charge of the operation, said the transplant involved ethnical concerns and should be discussed and -approved by provincial health department.

http://www.china.org.cn/china/2011-03/17/content_22160947.htm