Have a heart: Increasing the supply of transplant organs for infants and children

Abstract

"Babies sold for spares" trumpets the headline. Handicapped Honduran children are allegedly being adopted for use in an international "body-parts" trade.' This horrifying story, apocryphal or not, indicates both the shortcomings of current altruistic systems for organ procurement and allocation as well as the dangers of one alternative. The core problem is that demand for transplantable organs far exceeds supply. With ongoing advances in surgical procedures and immunosuppressive therapy, demand will likely rise further. Under the current voluntary (altruistic) system in the United States, supply cannot keep pace. How bad is the situation, and what can be done?