organs news stories on Newser

Black-Market Kidney Broker Pleads Guilty in NYC

Thu, 27 Oct 2011 17:53:56 CDT

A New York man pleaded guilty today to what experts said was the first proven case of black-market organ trafficking in the US. Levy Izhak Rosenbaum admitted in federal court in Trenton that he had brokered three illegal kidney transplants from people in Israel for US customers in exchange for...

Should We Be Paying People for Organs?

Evann Gastaldo — Sun, 12 Dec 2010 14:05:05 CST

In and around New York City, there are 7,800 people on organ transplant waiting lists; last year, only 682 of those people received organs. Despite the fact that there are thousands of bodies no longer in need of their organs, many of those organs aren’t viable transplant options—either...

Rich May Evolve Into Own Species

Mary Papenfuss — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 04:41:59 CDT

The super wealthy will have such access to high levels of health care, biotechnology and robotics that they could develop into their own species of being, argues a Silicon Valley futurist. The rich will be able to grow their own organs and manipulate genetics for superior abilities and freedom from...

Research on Embryonic Stem Cells to Get OK, With Caveat

Harry Kimball — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 14:29:12 CDT

The Obama administration will issue new guidelines significantly expanding the scope of stem cell research in July, though some caveats leave scientists dubious, the New York Times reports. The new rules will likely allow federal funds to flow to researchers using surplus embryos created in fertility clinics, a practice the...

Multiple Adult Stem Cells May Make Treatment Trickier

Matt Cantor — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 11:20:28 CDT

There is probably more than one type of adult stem cell in the intestines and other organs, a University of Utah researcher finds—which means therapies based on the cells could be more complicated than expected. Scientists had hoped a single stem cell could fix damage to an entire organ,...

New Moms Use Natural Remedy for Depression

Heather McPherson — Sun, 22 Jul 2007 08:05:07 CDT

People think it's weird, and there's no research to prove it works, but new mothers who've suffered from postpartum depression swear by it. The placenta that nourished the baby is injested by the new mom—dried and put into gelatin capsules, or just plain cooked and eaten. The placenta is...

Docs Accused Of Hurrying Death To Harvest Organs

Peter Fearon — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 11:24:50 CDT

A 47-year-old man was wrongly declared brain dead by two doctors apparently eager to harvest his organs, reports the LA Times . "They were waiting like vultures, so they could scoop them up," says the patient’s daughter, Melanie Sanchez. A third doctor determined that her father, who had suffered a catastrophic...