Canada - Looking for ways to curb illegal organ-transplant tourism, experts call for more Canadian donations

In the face of growing demand for organ transplants, experts are asking Canada to do more to curb the traffic in purchased body organs and transplant tourism.

Buying organs is illegal in Canada but the waiting list for donated organs is long, often driving desperate patients and their families abroad.

They can become targets for criminal trafficking rings who trade in organs acquired from the poverty-stricken, prison inmates and even children in orphanages, the Toronto Star reports.

"This is a cruel harvest of the poor," says Jonathan Ratel, a Canadian working as the European Union special prosecutor on organized crime in Kosovo.

Kosovo, which broke away from Serbia more than a decade ago, is a major target of investigation into organ trafficking.

Efforts to curb transplant tourism have been underway for years. Former Liberal MP Boris Wrzesnewskyj tried twice to table legislation that would have made it illegal for Canadians to buy organs anywhere but the effort died and critics pointed out there was no mechanism for enforcing such a law.

The Canadian medical transplant community backs the 2004 Declaration of Istanbul on Organ Trafficking and Transplant Tourism. But as the Star points out, the agreement is non-binding.

The recommendations to curb transplant tourism include upping Canada's below-average organ-donation rate and encouraging more living donations of kidneys and portions of livers and bowels.

"It is a big sacrifice but medical science has made it relatively safe," the Star notes in its editorial.

It also recommends trying to reach groups of Canadians culturally averse to organ donation via their religious or ethnic leaders and establishing a national donor registry to replace existing regional and provincial lists.

The need for donations could also be reduced through stem-cell research aimed at regenerating malfunctioning organs.

Steve Mertl | Daily Brew

Business & Investment Opportunities

YourVietnamExpert is a division of Saigon Business Corporation Pte Ltd, Incorporated in Singapore since 1994. As Your Business Companion, we propose a range of services in Consulting, Investment and Management, focusing three main economic sectors: International PR; Healthcare & Wellness;and Tourism & Hospitality. We also propose Higher Education, as a bridge between educational structures and industries, by supporting international programs. Sign up with twitter to get news updates with @SaigonBusinessC. Thanks.