can you tell us when the voting closes?

what will the results be?

can you publish this on the rss feed plz

:)Eliot

Love your Polls and contribute regularly but sometimes your options are too limited. Selling body parts would increase the exploitation of the financially disadvantaged ........ as if there isn't enough options for the greedy. For those who are starving and homeless, there are markets for their children, their sexual favours and even the lives of others and now you want them to be able to sell bits of themselves. I'm a promoter of organ/body-bit transplants but only from those no longer able to use those bits.

I was looking at the above reader survey and have as much of a problem with the phrasing of the questions as with the concept of selling kidneys.

The problem is that a phrase like "No-Its morally wrong" is vague, and worse, by clicking it I would be putting myself in to an unwilling alliance with the religous right.

I would like to click the button that says "No - allowing people to sell their organs or other tissue will always produce undesirable social outcomes that outweigh the benefits."

Peter

Agreed - my response would be no but not because of moral objections

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John Pickrell
Online Editor

I would like to be able to make a choice as to whether my organs can be sold for such purpose.
It's done in India although it's not usually in the interest of the seller as they are in a "forced" situation therefore they do not profit from the it. The organs are then sold to (usually) foreigners whom are on waiting lists for a kidney transplant from their own country. But if there was a regulated body to control, I believe it can benefit both parties.

Like some of the other comments I too didn't vote however would vote no, but not on moral grounds. My objection is with concerns about possible lowering of the quality of organs, the possibility of corruption once financial gain is involved and the fact that those who could least afford it as they are already financially disadvantaged would place themselves at higher risk to their longterm health.

If at all it should be allowed only after strict medical examination to ensure that the donor will not suffer any untoward consequences and is unlikely to end up as another transplant patient later on.

I agree with the comment on the limitation for responses. But morality is not a preserve of the religious right. Sale of one's body parts is setting dangerous precedents for all concerned.

This is a really hard one.

Until about 12 months ago I was for donating my body for tranplant use after I died. Then I heard specialists talking about the growing need for kidneys for diabetes type 2 patients. Now there are some people who work really hard to remain healthy and some who work really hard at trying to eat themselves into illness - I have friends on both sides and am in the middle myself. The deliberately unhealthy ones are also the most likely to push their ways to the head of the recipient queue.

Also I now see that some elements of the dead body are being sold for profit. I stopped donating blood when I discovered that my type of donation was being sold and I was not allowed back into the whole blood donation stream (forgive the pun!). I am now very confused about the whole system and unlikely to become a donor for free alive or dead. If body bits are already being sold I think the current owner should get paid for any donation.