Editing Organ transplantation (section)

=== Ethical concerns ===
{{Main|Ethics of organ transplantation|Declaration of Istanbul}}

The existence and distribution of organ transplantation procedures in [[developing countries]], while almost always beneficial to those receiving them, raise many [[ethical]] concerns. Both the source and method of obtaining the organ to transplant are major ethical issues to consider, as well as the notion of [[distributive justice]]. The [[World Health Organization]] argues that transplantations promote health, but the notion of "transplantation tourism" has the potential to violate [[human rights]] or exploit the poor, to have unintended health consequences, and to provide unequal access to services, all of which ultimately may cause harm. Regardless of the "gift of life", in the context of developing countries, this might be coercive. The practice of coercion could be considered exploitative of the poor population, violating basic human rights according to Articles 3 and 4 of the [[Universal Declaration of Human Rights]]. There is also a powerful opposing view, that trade in organs, if properly and effectively regulated to ensure that the seller is fully informed of all the consequences of donation, is a mutually beneficial transaction between two consenting adults, and that prohibiting it would itself be a violation of Articles 3 and 29 of the [[Universal Declaration of Human Rights]].

Even within developed countries there is concern that enthusiasm for increasing the supply of organs may trample on respect for the right to life. The question is made even more complicated by the fact that the "irreversibility" criterion for [[legal death]] cannot be [[Medical definition of death|adequately defined]] and can easily change with changing technology.<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Whetstine L, Streat S, Darwin M, Crippen D |title=Pro/con ethics debate: When is dead really dead? |journal=Critical Care |volume=9 |issue=6 |year=2005 |pages=538–42 |pmid=16356234 |pmc=1414041 |doi=10.1186/cc3894 |doi-access=free }}</ref>