Introduction
Organ transplantation is a surgical practice in which a functional organ is implanted to substitute a damaged one (W.H.O, 2012). The vital organs that can be transplanted include the heart, livers, kidneys and lungs. The existence of diabetes, lupus and polycystic kidney illness may necessitate the need for kidney transplantation. Cirrhosis may necessitate the need for liver transplantation. Heart transplantation may be done due to coronary vein illnesses or heart malfunction. Finally, cystic fibrosis may make doctors recommend lung transplantation surgery. Health professionals can also transplant bones, the skin and other tissues and tendons. The practice developed in the early 20th century and has undergone significant transformations. Notably, organ transplantation has saved many lives over the years.
Patients may undergo organ transplantation due to a number of reasons. The main causes for the need for organ transplantation are birth defects, trauma and disease. Transplants are done after other procedures of medical intervention have proved to be inefficient. Usually, medical practitioners recommend organ transplantation only when it is essential (W.H.O, 2012). It involves complicated procedures, lengthy recovery periods and lifestyle changes. Many countries store data of all individuals in the country who have to undergo organ transplantation procedures. This is done to ease the identification of matches. Patients are normally ranked. Nevertheless, the time that one has spent waiting for a match is not given priority since another person may need an organ urgently.
Health professionals obtain organs for transplantation purposes from two sources namely living donors and corpses. However, corpses are the prime sources of transplant organs. People can offer their liver, kidney, bone marrow and so on to other individuals, mainly their family members, to save their lives. Recipients of organs must take certain drugs to contain their immune system before organ transplantation procedures. This is vital since the risk of rejection of organs must be avoided or reduced. In addition, doctors conduct various medical tests to examine the chances of success. Certain infections, alcohol abuse, heart diseases and certain health problems can adversely affect the outcome of organ transplantation surgeries (Ben-David, 2005). Tissue and blood tests must also be performed before organ transplantation. This reduces the possibility of rejection of implanted organs.
The recovery period after an organ-transplantation procedure varies from one person to another. A patient can stay for a few weeks in a hospital after a transplantation procedure while another patient may take months to recover. Furthermore, doctors may retain a patient in a hospital for a long time to monitor the possibility of rejection. Patients have to adjust their lifestyle behaviours after they undergo organ transplantation surgery. Moreover, they may have to adjust their dietary patterns to contain fresh organs. Adjustment in lifestyle and dietary patterns are necessary to enable gradual and balanced recovery (Shelton, 2001). Finally, patients should seek the services of psychiatrists or psychologists before and after an organ transplantation surgery (Siegel, Alvaro & Claremont Symposium on Applied Social Psychology, 2010).
Advantages of Organ Transplantation
The human body is vulnerable to many illnesses that lead to damage of vital organs. Drugs, certain chemical compounds and heavy metals can also damage organs. However, some of the organs in the body perform critical roles that when they are damaged, they have to be replaced. The failure of such vital organs can lead to the death of a patient. This brings the first advantage of organ transplantation. Organ transplantation saves the lives of many individuals worldwide. The practice offers patients with certain organ failures a second chance to live high-quality life (Francis, 2011). This is the most prominent advantage of organ transplantation. It is the common reason why many people often opt to donate their organs to other people. A healthy person can donate a non-vital organ to another individual who needs it to live. An organ like a kidney plays an essential role in a person’s life. Additionally, an individual can survive with only one kidney. However, survival without a kidney is impossible. Hence, transplantation of a kidney into a person who has had total kidney failure saves the life of the patient who has had kidney malfunction. Moreover, people who have received organs from donors live a longer life. This was not possible before the development of organ transplantation as a medical procedure.
The other advantage of organ transplantation is that it improves the quality of life of a patient. Organ transplantation improves the quality of patients’ lives since it reduces or eliminates dependency and hospitalization costs (Thomas, 2011). Organ damage leads to frequent hospitalization of individuals. Furthermore, the treatment of illnesses related to organ failure attracts enormous hospital bills. However, organ transplantation is cheaper compared to management of a medical condition through frequent hospitalization. Management of a condition like a kidney failure is expensive compared to kidney transplantation in the long term. Management of kidney failure requires that a patient goes through dialysis. However, dialysis is expensive and can result in a reduction of quality of life. Organ transplantation also improves patients’ quality of life through the elimination of dependency. People with critical health conditions that arise due to organ failure usually depend on other people. However, through organ transplantation, patients with such critical conditions can go back to normal life without being dependent on others. An individual who cannot see due to damage to some eye tissues has to depend on others for mobility. However, transplantation of the damaged eye tissues enables the individual to eliminate the dependency on others. The transplantation enables the person to see again and move freely without dependency. Hence, organ transplantation improves the quality of life of people.
The other notable advantage of organ transplantation is that it leads to further development of science. Organ transplantation relates to medical research that seeks to improve the medical conditions of individuals. Medical practitioners learn a lot when they undertake organ transplantation procedures.
Disadvantages of Organ Transplantation
Despite the advantages that organ transplantation has, there are certain disadvantages. The most notable disadvantage of organ transplantation is the possible health risks involved. Organ transplantation requires individuals to undergo a medical operation. However, operations or surgeries have medical risks that include disease or infection, surgical mistakes and death (Thomas, 2011). Hence, an individual who has decided to donate an organ to be transplanted into another person exposes himself or herself to these risks. Nevertheless, organ transplantation does not consider future health problems that a person may experience. Living donors can donate a lung, kidney, pancreas, and part of the liver. However, there is no assurance that the organ that remains after donation will remain in a healthy state. Hence, it is possible for an individual to develop a condition that affects the other organ that remained after organ donation. The donor will end up in the situation that the recipient of his organ was in previously.
Rejection of a donated organ is also another disadvantage of organ transplantation. An individual can donate an organ to save the life of a friend or family member. However, the body of the recipient may reject the organ that the donor has provided. This may demoralize the donor of the organ. The donor may feel that he has lost a part of his body for nothing. The donor may feel that he has risked his life and experienced pain without any positive outcome. Furthermore, organ rejection forces the recipient to take medications that counter the effects of rejection. A recipient whose body has rejected a donated organ must take drugs that counter organ rejection for the rest of his life.
The other disadvantage of organ transplantation is that it does not consider the political, social or religious orientation of the donors of organs. This mainly happens when the donor is a corpse. The donor, who is dead, or his family cannot determine or decide who receives the organs that he has donated (Price, 2000). hus, the organs can be donated to patients who have, unlike spiritual or political beliefs. The organs may be donated to patients who the donor or his family considers unworthy. Hence, donors must view all individuals or recipients of donated organs as being equal (Cohen, 2012).
How Islam Views Organ Transplantation
Organ transplantation has been an issue that many religious scholars have debated frequently. More specifically, Muslims view organ transplantation differently. Many Muslims view organ transplantation as impermissible. However, contemporary Muslim scholars view it as permissible due to the advantages that it has.
Some Muslims deem organ transplantation impermissible since the negative effects that it has may surpass the potential benefits. They support their views with various arguments. According to Islam, Allah honours the human body. Hence, the body organs of all humans are sacred. Allah does not expect anybody to interfere with the body organs of another person. Therefore, it is unlawful to gain from an organ of another person (Khaja, 2003). Moreover, Allah allows humans to profit from flora and fauna. However, obtaining benefits from human organs place humans in the same class as plants and animals.
Sharia laws prohibit the deformation and disfigurement of human bodies since human bodies are divinely created (Khaja, 2003). Sharia laws are rules that guide Muslims. However, organ transplantation involves the disfigurement of human bodies. Hence, it contradicts the expectations of Sharia laws. According to Islamic beliefs, individuals do not own their bodies. Instead, human bodies are trusting that Allah has given individuals. Therefore, it is impermissible to offer a body part to another person.
Contemporary Muslim scholars view organ transplantation as permissible subject to definite circumstances. According to these scholars, Islamic education teaches Muslims that unlawful activities may be necessary under extreme circumstances (Mufti, 2012). Under such extreme circumstances, Sharia prohibitions may be ignored. Notably, a medical condition that threatens the life of an individual is considered an extreme condition. Hence, if a person’s life can be saved through organ transplantation, then Sharia laws can be waived.
Additionally, contemporary Muslim scholars argue that modern organ transplantation procedures do not violate human sanctity. Human bodies are valued and respected whether they are alive or lifeless. Islam ordered that the body must be honoured (Mufti, 2012). Nonetheless, it did not prescribe how the body is dishonoured. Hence, it is possible to deem contemporary organ transplantation practices as honouring the human body. Transplantation procedures are done in a respectful manner (Rispler-Ḥayyîm, 1993). Secondly, under certain conditions, Sharia ignores the sanctity of the human body especially in case organ transplantation results in a person’s life being saved.
Furthermore, contemporary Muslim scholars argue that even though the body does not belong to an individual, Allah permits an individual to use his body for a good course. These scholars compare the human body and wealth. Allah allows people to use the wealth that He has given them correctly. Wealth is a gift that Allah gives people. In the same manner, the body is a gift that can be used correctly through organ donation to save another person’s life.
Finally, scholars who argue against organ transplantation do not argue against blood transfusion. Almost all Muslim scholars argue that blood transfusion and donation are permissible in extreme circumstances. Consequently, organ transplantation should also be permissible (Mufti, 2012). Organ transplantation through modern surgical procedures ensures that an individual’s body is not mutilated. Based on this observation, Muslims can donate body organs to save other people’s lives.
Conclusions
Reversal or treatment of organ failure is impossible. Organ failure results in many problems and the best option is to undergo organ transplantation surgery. Organ transplantation has numerous benefits and disadvantages. However, the benefits are greater than the disadvantages. The existence of numerous benefits also makes contemporary Muslim scholars view organ transplantation as a permissible medical procedure.
References
Ben-David, B. (2005). Organ donation and transplantation: Body organs as an exchangeable socio-cultural resource. Connecticut: Praeger Publishers.
Cohen, E. (2012). Organ Transplantation: Defining the Ethical and Policy Issues. Web.
Francis, L. (2011). Benefits of Organ Donation. Web.
Khaja, Q. (2003).Ethics of Organ Transplantation-An Islamic Perspective. Web.
Mufti, I. (2012). Is organ donation permissible? Web.
Price, T. (2000). Legal and ethical aspects of organ transplantation. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Rispler-Ḥayyîm, W. (1993). Islamic medical ethics in the twentieth century. Leiden: Brill.
Shelton, N. (2001). The ethics of organ transplantation. Amsterdam: JAI publishers.
Siegel, T., Alvaro, M., & Claremont Symposium on Applied Social Psychology. (2010). Understanding organ donation: Applied behavioural science perspectives. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell.
Thomas, M. (2011). The Benefits of Organ Transplant. Web.
W.H.O. (2012). Transplantation: Human organ transplantation. Web.