Larry Niven's
Known Space books develop the concept that in the
future the demand for
organs and
limbs for use in
spare part surgery becomes so acute (2100's) that people are murdered and body parts are stolen to order.
The
government of the
future begins to
execute criminals for minor
offences in order help to reduce the organ bank problem but demand only increases further.
In Russia in 2000 a boy was recently almost sold for parts as reported on Sky and CNN.
In China in 2000 criminals executed in the New year celebrations have parts removed and sold in local hospitals for operations as reported on BBC.
In January 2001 CBS News reports that Tissue Banks that were dominated by local non-profit organizations are being turned into billion dollar corporations . It's against the law to sell tissue - such as veins , blood , skin and bones - but unlike lifesaving organ donations, tissue donations are not tightly regulated. Companies get around it by charging high service fees for collecting, processing and shipping the tissue.
One human body can be worth more than $100,000 in parts.
Donor families probably never imagine, and are rarely told that tissue can also be processed into collagen for wrinkle removal, lip enhancements and other cosmetic procedures.
Demand for bone is steadily increasing to repair the aging bodies of baby boomers .
Demand is so great some tissue banks are coercing, even lying to families that have suffered the death of a loved one.
This is not Science Fiction any longer.
My own view is that Genetic Engineering and Cloning Technology will prevent a widescale organ bank problem in the future. I hope!
But not, it seems before some companies make an obscene profit from the gifts of tissue from families who think it is going to help those in need, such as burns victims.
See also the patchwork girl.