The promise of xenotransplantation: a challenge

Abstract

According to many scholars, kidney xenotransplantation promises to mitigate the organ supply shortage. This claim has a certain obviousness to it: by flooding the market with a new source of kidneys, xenotransplantation promises to be a panacea. Our goal is to challenge this claim. We argue that xenotransplantation may increase rather than decrease demand for kidneys, may reduce kidney allotransplants, and may be inaccessible or otherwise unused. By offering the challenge, we hope to show deeper reflection is needed on how xenotransplantation will affect the dearth of available organs.

Keywords: Kidney; Transplantation.