Talk about overkill. After contacting an online agent, on April 28, a 17-year-old high school freshman from Huaishan, Anhui had his kidney removed for 22,000RMB. The student, surnamed Zheng, claimed he wanted to buy an iPad 2, but could not afford it. He thus decided the best course of action was to sling his innards on the black market. more ›

"LOCAL hospitals said a pilot program that encourages organ donation after cardiac death should greatly benefit patients with organ failure. However health authorities should work out a practical system to carry out the program which began this month. According to the Ministry of Health, all big hospitals qualified to do organ transplant can apply to provincial health bureau for a one-year license to perform organ transplant after a donor's cardiac death. Hospitals that performed more than ten transplants within one year can apply for a long-term license from the Organ Transplant Committee. Doctors said the practice can increase the number of organ transplants by seven times in China." [Shanghai Daily] more ›

Organs are hard to come by in China these days: a million people a year need transplants, but less than one percent actually receive one. Getting on the coveted organ list is easier if you're famous - the late Fu Biao had two liver transplants within a few months - but generally, the need for organs far exceeds the number of possible donors. more ›

Organ trafficking stirs concern [Global Times] "The number of organ transplants from deceased donors in China is only 130 since the first case in 2003, one of the country's leading transplant experts said at a seminar yesterday. About 11,000 transplant operations are performed each year in China, including both living- and all deceased-donor transplantations, including executed prisoners, making the country the second-largest in the world to the US in total number. But that number it is far from enough to meet demand, Chen Zhonghua, the Chinese Medical Association's deputy director for transplanting, said…" more ›