Are there any confirmed cases of theft of organs among living people with “black” transplantologists?

From time to time, the media and social networks raise the noise around the next story, which was stolen from someone, for example, a kidney. Usually history tells So: a man came to the bar, and he was poured something, or even just walked along the street, someone attacked him-and that’s it. Further, the victim comes to his senses in a bath with ice and gropes a fresh scar on his body. He calls the ambulance and the police, and there they explain to him that he, it turns out, stole a kidney / part of the liver or something else. We decided to figure out whether such a scenario is possible and whether there were such cases recorded by authoritative sources.

A runaway overview of newspaper headings shows an incredible scatter of information about the stolen organs. In China, a six -year -old child was allegedly stolen cornea, in Moscow by a young actor - testicles, and in the trading center of the baby - The kidney. The kidney, it should be noted, is the most popular organ for theft, which corresponds to the length queues In a sheet of waiting for its transplant. In Russia, it has more than 6,000 people. For comparison, about 100 patients are waiting for the light transplantation, the heart is 700–800 patients, and the liver - 1700–1800.

In order to understand the issue, you need to decide on some concepts. The removal of organs and tissues can occur for various reasons: medical - transplantation; scientific - studying; commercial - sale, manufacture of souvenirs, etc.; physiological - eating; religious - creation of cult items, use for sacrifices; individual psychological - satisfaction of personal needs, such as creativity or revenge. In this analysis, we limit ourselves to a medical motive, that is, the seizure of organs as a donor material for transplantation.

Uncommunicable donation criminal punishable: coercion to him suggests in Russia a term of up to four years, and implementation Provides The measure of punishment up to life imprisonment and death. Also donation It happens Later and posthumous. So that the question made in the heading can be reformed formally more accurately: "Are there any cases of uncommitty lifetime donation of organs?"

In the XX century, in China it was legislative fixed The practice of withdrawal of organs from the specified execution of the death penalty. Under pressure International Medical Community Law canceledHowever, there is CertificatesIncluding doctors, that such a practice is still widespread.

In addition to China, Albania and Kosovo were accused of unbeatroval seizure of organs. Former Hague Prosecutor of the Hague Tribunal Karl del Ponte in 2008 told On the abductions of the Albanians 300 Serbs, gypsies and the tachi Albanians who do not support Khashim. According to her, their kidneys and heart were seized from them. She said that prisoners with an already seized kidney were forced to live in imprisonment until there was a buyer for the second. In 2010, the European Council was done about this report. Only November 9, 2020 took place The first hearings on this matter.

Thus, in world practice there are really cases of uncommunicable lifetime extraction of organs for the purpose of transplantation. Such cases are usually occurred in countries with totalitarian regimes or at war, that is, with those where dozens of people are difficult to track the loss. 

However, in peacetime, there are quite tenacious stories about “black” transplantologists. Stories about killer doctors gained popularity in Russia after the sensational criminal prosecution of doctors of the metropolitan GKB No. 20. A victim was delivered to them with a heavy traumatic brain injury. Doctors evaluated his condition as critical and informed about the presence of a potential donor by the Moscow Coordinating Center for Organ Donation. However, preparations for the fence of the bodies were interrupted by law enforcement officers. Doctors Presented The accusation of the preparation of intentional murder, investigation and appeal took over three years. As a result, the Supreme Court Taken the acquittal of the verdict, but the reputation of domestic transplantology was Apply A serious blow, and hundreds of patients died without waiting for a saving organ.

So in Russian society there was a persistent prejudice against the donation of bodies, and the media more than once Smecked Bloody storiesnot backed up by any facts. Typically, stories about “black” transplantologists are, “the victim walked along the street, lost consciousness - came to his senses in a bath with ice.”

To begin with, the organ outside the body is not suitable for transplantation for a very short time, which is why in the series about doctors we see that the teams of transplantologists use helicopters. For example, light Can To transplant no more than seven hours, the heart lives about nine hours, the liver - 16, and the kidneys remain viable until the day after extraction. Thus, the idea of ​​attacking a person, withdrawing organs and “preserve” them before the recipient is unreal.

Competent lifetime seizure of the organ from the donor Requires a significant number of personnel and special equipment. The state should have an anesthetist-resuscitator (ideally, accompanied by anesthetic of average medical personnel), a team of surgeons-transplants (a specialist in general or any other profile has no knowledge and experience in such operations), operating average medical personnel and laboratory doctor, as well as a specialized specialist (in In case of kidney donation - nephrologist, heart - cardiologist, lungs - pulmonologist, etc.). Typically, up to 100 personnel are involved in transplantological operations. In addition, a successful transplant requires special equipment - artificial kidney (not always transplanted kidney “starts” immediately), cardiomonitors, infusomats, IVL and ECMO devices, as well as prescription drugs for a donor and a recipient during surgery. That is, organizing a similar complex in the basement or on a suburban area will not work.

Another important point is that the transplantation of the donor organ does not make the recipient immediately and completely healthy. He will be Required Specific drugs against rejection for many years, or for life. It is almost impossible to get them without an official document on transplantation of the body. Moreover, with such a number of participants in the process, it is unlikely that it will be possible to avoid leakage of history in the media.

And finally, we will analyze the myth of an ice bath. In most city legends, it is there that a person comes to his senses. We lower physical calculations, for how many hours at room temperature all the ice will melt. Instead, we turn to another fact: at a water temperature +2-3 ° C The death of a person Arrives Within 10-15 minutes. All elements of horror stories about “woke up without a kidney in a bath with ice” do not have a logical basis. 

Thus, cases of involuntary donation are recorded in world practice, but most often occur in countries with totalitarian regimes or in a state of military conflict, and their international tribunals are investigated. And the stories about how a person drank with a stranger in a bar, and then woke up in a bath with an ice without a kidney removed in the basement with a gang of “black” transplantologists, and a city horror story.

Fake

What do our verdicts mean?

Read on the topic:

1. Karl del Ponte "Hunt. Me and war criminals "
2. Sasha Milikoev "Boy from a yellow house"
3. BBC: Tracy Joliff: a woman giving her organs to strangers