Tzarax 1
Anthony Tzarax
Mrs. Knighten- Miller- 2
AP English 11
3 November 2014
In November 12, 2013 Alex Mendoza, a member of the Mendoza family, died, but he did
not passed away from an accident but from organ failure. All he needed was an organ, but no one
in his family had a compatible or similar blood type as his. His name was added to a long list of
organ needed patients, but he never received the organ he needed. In that waiting list 63,000
patients names are written but every 18 minutes another person is added to that waiting place
where patients who need a transplant, can get an animal organ that will work for their list. By the
end of the year about only 1/3rd of the patients get an organ but the others keep on waiting until
they can (Xenotransplantation: Pigs to Humans). Today science has gotten to a body, scientists
call this Xenotransplantation. Xenotransplantation can save many lives, but people disagree with
the use of xenotransplantation. People who do not need a transplant may hate on
xenotransplantation, but a patient will be more than happy to receive that organ and live a longer
life. Xenotransplantation can help society by providing organs that are needed by patients
Xenotransplantation is important to the human body and our field of science because it raises the
human life spam; also can also bring the “black market” of organs to an end and actually
xenotransplantation can provide patients with better organ quality.
Many individuals protest that xenotransplantation must not be allowed; it will only hurt
more and more animal than the ones being abused in slaughter houses and killed for human food.
No animal should ever be mutated and have its organs used for human benefits. Mutating
animal would just harm animal, according to virologist Jonathan Allan “We've seen with AIDS
Tzarax 2
and Ebola, a virus jumping species can be devastating, the concern is that it's a time bomb with a
long fuse. It could be 20 or 30 years before you see its effects." (“Xenotransplantation: Pigs to
Humans”).
However, a virus jumping species has not been proved yet, which gives the possibility for
the animals to be able for use in xenotransplantation. There are 63,000 patients waiting in the
U.S. alone for transplants and every 18 minutes a new name is added. Using pigs or Simians will
benefit the human race by having less humans actually having to donate their own organs and
making the recovery process faster. Allowing humans to have a longer life spam can mean that
there can come many benefits to every organism on the world over time; by now having the
power to reproduce organs of the body means it might be possible to reproduce parts animals
need, or parts that are helpful to other animals
Although it seems as if xenotransplantation can be a good thing, xenotransplantation still
has many processes that need to be fixed like for example, the rejection rate of organs is still too
high according to the FDA ratings. Jay Fishman, specialist in transplantation “AIDS research has
shown that there are a large number of viruses and retroviruses in most primates that are
infectious to humans, I would favor FDA guidelines that excluded primates as donors for
humans.”(Sattley). Specialist Jay Fishman explains that mutated organs still carry to many
viruses that human bodies are not capable of withstanding.
Through time technology has gotten more and more advanced. The world has gotten to
the point where one is able to have an animal organ for a human body. Being able to mutate
organs for human needs also means that organs already come infection-free.
In March of 2013, Organs from the same donor were shared between 3 patients.
Unfortunately all 3 of the patients died from rabies that had come along with the organ that was
Tzarax 3
transplanted (Tomasulo). Also in 2004 the same thing happened, 4 other patients died from
rabies that had come from the organ donor. Even though the donor took many health tests, the
test results came out that he was positive for donor eligibility, but inside the organs a rabies
infection had been created (Investigation of Rabies). Unfortunately these 6 patients passed away
because of the lack germ-free organs. If hospital would allow xenotransplantation things like
these would not be happening.
Therefore patients with xenotransplantation’s would receive infection –free organs or in
other words, organs that have no infections in them. Since the organs are coming from mutated
animals’ scientist develop ways to put blood or human DNA into organs to kill of viruses.
Xenotransplantation can save the lives of many patients but at the same time it can
provide patients with better and cleaner organs.
Xenotransplantation allows many patients to live better and longer, but it also helps the
government and safety of civilians. Allowing xenotransplantation can reduce or even end the
“black market” for organs.
Back in November 2013, a 6 year old child went missing. He was found dead without his
eyes and without kidneys (Archer). In January, 2013 a Georgian teen died supposedly to a
trauma attack, but once the family send the body for an autopsy, the discovered they body
without any organs (Archer). The last two cases show what happens since organs are needed fast
for many patients. While in 2012 an African girl was kidnapped to the United Kingdom just to
sell her organs there. Luckily she was saved by the bell, when just in time the authorities saved
her from the kidnappers (Archer). In 2011, a 25-year old worker was forced to sell his kidneys
by the other workers in the place (Fan).
Tzarax 4
All these cases of these poor people will be heard less once xenotransplantation is allowed,
xenotransplantation can lower the rate of these kidnaps since organs will now be able to find
thanks to xenotransplantation.
As a result, xenotransplantation will lower the value of organs because now the organs
will be more accessible for people who need organs.
Not only does xenotransplantation help those in needs, it also helps other organisms
besides humans, the government and those in possible danger.
Finding organs donors gets more difficult every year; doctors must find the right blood type or
the right organs patients need. Xenotransplantation will increase the finding rate of most organs,
but most importantly organ donors will not be need anymore and at the same time more lives
will be saved.
For example, in 1992-1992, in the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Thomas
Starzl transplanted baboon liver into two patient with hepatitis. Unfortunately both of the patients
died, not from the rejection but from the infections caused inside the body (Bruce).
Xenotransplantation was not the cause of death but scientists are not sure if the transplantation
would have worked. Meanwhile, in 1995, Suzanne Ildstad, specialist in bone marrow
transplantation, transplanted baboon bone marrow into a patient in order to try to save him from
AIDS. The transplantation went well but the bone narrow was rejected after two week, yet
thanks to the transplantation the patient is still alive today (Bruce). Xenotransplantation allowed
this patient another chance at life and to life a better life.
Xenotransplantation will decrease the death rates, and it will also decrease the waiting list
of thousands of organs that are needed today. Xenotransplantation will save many lives but at the
same time less people will be needed to donate organs.
Tzarax 5
If xenotransplantation get more support, the answer to a longer life spam is in the hands
of scientist, many animal organs will be used for human but it will save the human race.
No matter what people say, xenotransplantation will save lives by providing organs to patients,
bringing down the “black market”, and it can provide organs that have a better quality that
human ones have. Xenotransplantation will not just save the lives of many but it also opens
doors to many new scientific methods in life and medicine. Xenotransplantation can be the
missing step to getting to the cures of other diseases like Ebola or AIDS. In now time to open
the door to xenotransplantation and let xenotransplantation change the world by saving and
improving this world.
Tzarax 6
Works Cited
Tomasulo, Anna. "Organ Transplant Leads To Rabies Infection and Death | HealthMap." Organ
Transplant Leads To Rabies Infection and Death | HealthMap. 13 Mar. 2013. Web. 4
Nov. 2014. <http://healthmap.org/site/diseasedaily/article/organ-transplant-leads-rabiesinfection-and-death-31813>.
Aleccia, Jonel. "Infected Organs Pose Deadly Transplant Risk." Msnbc.com. 6 June 2010. Web.
4 Nov. 2014. <http://www.nbcnews.com/id/37624303/ns/healthinfectious_diseases/t/infected-organs-pose-deadly-transplant-risk/#.VFhyZPnF-So>.
Archer, Dale. "Body Snatchers: Organ Harvesting For Profit." Psychology Today: Health, Help,
Happiness Find a Therapist. 13 Nov. 2013. Web. 20 Oct. 2014.
<http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/reading-between-the-headlines/201311/bodysnatchers-organ-harvesting-profit>.
Bruce Agnew, Bruce. "Research In The News." Research In The News. Web. 26 Oct. 2014.
<http://science.education.nih.gov/newsnapshots/toc_xeno/xenoritn/xenoritn.html>.
Dinsmoor, Robert S. "Xenotransplantation." Diabetes SelfManagement RSS. Diabetes SelfManagement. Web. 9 Oct. 2014.
<http://www.diabetesselfmanagement.com/Articles/DiabetesDefinitions/xenotransplantation/>.
Fan, Jiayang. "Can China Stop Organ Trafficking? - The New Yorker." The New Yorker. 10 Jan.
2014. Web. 22 Oct. 2014. <http://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/can-china-stoporgan-trafficking>.
Fano, Alix. "What's Wrong With Xenotransplantation? - Campaign for Responsible
Transplantation." What's Wrong With Xenotransplantation? - Campaign for Responsible
Tzarax 7
Transplantation. Web. 8 Oct. 2014. <http://www.crt-online.org/wrong.html>.
"Investigation of Rabies Infections in Organ Donor and Transplant Recipients --- Alabama,
Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Texas, 2004." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Web. 4 Nov. 2014.
<http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5326a6.htm>.
Sattley, Melissa. "The Xenotransplantation Debate - Are Animal Islets More Harm than Good?"
- Diabetes Health. 1 July 1998. Web. 9 Oct. 2014.
<http://diabeteshealth.com/read/1998/07/01/1212/the-xenotransplantation-debate---areanimal-islets-more-harm-than-good/>.