BHS
                    Undergraduate Specialization in
                          Bioethics, Humanities, and Society

Please join us for a noon Brown Bag
"Living Cadavers"
The Ethics of Human Organ Modification
Monir Moniruzzaman, MS, PhD candidate

The “miracle” success of organ transplantation has created conditions for an illegal, but thriving trade in human organs, largely in the developing countries. In Bangladesh, a country which serves as an organ bazaar for wealthy domestic and international recipients, the average market price for a kidney is $1,500. In the face of tremendous difficulties, I conducted risky but novel underground fieldwork involving 33 kidney sellers in Bangladesh. This presentation explores how those kidney sellers participate in the illegal trade and their experience with commodifying “spare parts” of the body. It examines ethical questions, such as: Is it right to purchase an organ, even if the organ sought provides longevity? Is the sale of one’s organ a justifiable means of fighting poverty? The paper concludes that organ commodification represents a serious exploitation and dehumanization of the poor. The practice challenges us to rethink what it means to be human in 21st century.

Wednesday, December 11th • 12:00 Noon C-102 East Fee Hall