Conversation Class

Organ Transplant
Thinking about the topic

1) What comes to mind when you hear the phrase ‘organ transplants’?

2) When do you think the very first heart transplant took place? (

3) Do donor cards exist in your country? Do you carry one? Would you carry one? Why? Why not?

4) Are you an organ donor? Why/why not?

5) What do you think of organ transplants?

6) Is it important for people to be informed about this issue? Why?

7) What do you know about organ transplants?

Conversation Class

Parts of the body vocabulary

Match the organs with the definitions

A substance found inside our bones. It contains the cells responsible for the production
liver of the red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets.

heart The two organs in the lower part of the body that filter blood.

lungs This is the bone in our heads just below our mouths that we use when we chew food.

kidneys This carries blood around our bodies.

skin This is the hard substance found all over our bodies that forms the skeleton.

brain This is a series of small bones that goes from our necks to the bottom of our backs.

spine The organ in the chest that we breathe with.

bone marrow This part of the body is inside our head and we use it to think, among other things.

bone The organ that pumps blood round the body.

vein The largest organ which covers our entire body.

This is a dark-red gland in the upper part of the abdomen on the right side. It stores and
jaw
filters blood, converts sugars into glycogen, and has many other uses.

- Which body parts do you think can and can’t be transplanted? Which parts are you not sure about?
(not restricted to vocabulary in chart)

- On the donor card you can refuse to donate certain parts of your body. Is there anything you would
not donate? Can you explain why?

Further discussion

1) What do you think of people who refuse organ transplants? Why may people do this?

2) Do you think organ transplants will become much more common in the future?

3) Do you think body parts from animals will be used in organ transplants in the future?

4) Would you accept to have an animal’s heart if it could save your life?

5) Do you think brain transplants will be possible in the future?

6) Would you give up one of your kidneys or half of your liver to save the life of a friend?
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7) What do you think of face transplants?

8) Would you allow the organs of a loved one to be transplanted?

9) What would you think if your government paid for a serial killer in prison to have an organ
transplant?

10) Which of your organs would you want for organ transplants after you die?

11) If a person receives a body part, such as a heart, from someone else, do you think the recipient could
take on any of the personality or characteristics of the donor?

12) What are the dangers of organ transplants?

13) If you could clone yourself to have a stock of body parts for future organ transplants, would you?

14) Do you feel there is any ethical objection to transplanting a collection of body parts, for example, a
whole face or an entire body? If a person was paralysed from the neck down do you think a
complete body transplant would be a good option?

Body transplants:
Robert J. White (born 1925) is an American surgeon, best known for his head transplants on monkeys.

In the 1970s, after a long series of experiments, White performed a transplant of one monkey head onto the
body of another monkey, although it survived just a few days. These operations were continued and
perfected to the point where the transplanted head could have survived indefinitely on its new body, though
the animals were in fact euthanized. The problem with this operation is that since no one currently knows
how to repair nerve damage which would arise when the spinal cord is severed during the head transplant
process, the recipient would become paralyzed from the neck down. However, it is thought that stem cells
might be able to repair the damage.

Facebook organ donors

Nearly 7,000 people in the United States die each year while waiting for an organ transplant and around
10,000 people in Britain are on the waiting list for an organ. With the huge numbers of Facebook members
in both countries, the social networking site hopes its foray into social engineering will make a big impact.

An American liver transplant director at a major hospital, Dr Andrew Cameron, called it a historic day and
speculated it may well eliminate the problem of people dying while waiting for a transplant.

As well as registering as donors, people are posting their personal stories of why they are donating. Debbie
Greenwood from Manchester, 336 friends: "My 5-year-old grandson had a combined liver and kidney
transplant 18 months ago, his life is now 100% better and we are eternally grateful to the donor family,
whom we have met."

Facebook says the initiative is about making it easier on families, as they are more likely to know their loved
one's donor status in advance. It's also about encouraging people who may have thought about it, but not got
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around to it or who might be inspired to donate if they find out that their friends are doing it. The British site
already has nearly 70,000 Facebook likes and climbing.

Match the words or phrases with the definitions

Social engineering a person who provides blood, an organ, or semen for transplantation, transfusion, etc.

foray joint, together at the same time

donor Incursion, movement into an unfamiliar are

registering measures to make changes to society

Waiting list enrolling, formally indicating interest

speculated remove

combined thought, reasoned, theorized

eliminate A list of people waiting for something, such as housing or admission to a hospital or
school.

Global body parts trade increases

A serious shortage of donated organs in rich countries is leading to a worrying increase in the shady and
illegal body parts trade. Wealthy foreigners with life-threatening illnesses are looking to poorer nations like
China, Colombia, Egypt, Pakistan and the Philippines to get hold of an organ that will give them a new lease
of life. The World Health Organization recently estimated that up to 21,000 liver transplants are carried out
annually. Medical experts say this figure is greatly understated and put annual worldwide demand at over
90,000. This means there is a thriving trade in organ trafficking and a booming black market in human body
parts. “Transplant tourists” are finding it easier to find new organs because the number of poor willing to sell
their liver or kidney as a short-term escape from poverty increases.

The body part trade is banned in many countries around the world but laws are often very confusing and full
of loopholes. This makes it difficult for authorities to regulate and to crack down on illegal sales, which
increases the number of deaths among donors. Transplant surgery carries high risks, especially with liver
transplants, which involve removing part of the donor's liver. In Pakistan booming demand has led to a
“kidney bazaar” - rich patients pay $8,000 for a new kidney, for which donors are paid $300 - $1,000 and
often get no medical care after the surgery. China recently banned the sale of human organs and restricted
transplants for foreigners. It transplants many organs from executed prisoners after obtaining consent from
the convicts or their next of kin.

Say if the sentences are TRUE or FALSE

Conversation Class

A body parts supermarket has opened to meet demand for organs.

b. Chinese and Egyptians top the list of those wanting new organs.

c. The WHO believes 21,000 liver transplants occur every year.

d. Transplant tourists are finding it more difficult to find new organs.

e. Not one country has banned the trade in body parts.

f. Organ donors in Pakistan get very good after surgery medical care.

g. China has restricted the use of body parts for foreigners.

h. China uses body parts from executed prisoners.

2. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article:

1. shortage a. permission

2 shady b. obtain

3. get hold of c. gaps

4. thriving d. prepared

5. willing e. limited

6. loopholes f. lack

7. crack down on g. booming

8. restricted h. prisoners

9. consent i. unethical

10. convicts j. put a stop to