BMJ  2003;327:1287 (29 November), doi:10.1136/bmj.327.7426.1287-c

Letter

Role of living liver donation

Surgery violates principles of beneficence and autonomy

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

EDITOR—Neuberger and Price admit that there is a significant morbidity and an up to 1% mortality among living liver donors.¹ They argue that a combination of the potential benefits to the recipient, the right of donors to make an altruistic decision to help someone else, an acceptable "societal ceiling" concerning mortality and morbidity, and an acceptable risk-benefit ratio, are sufficient for living liver donation to be morally acceptable.

However, the fundamental goals of medicine, without which medicine could not exist as a practice, are more important than either the notion of patient autonomy or a utilitarian cost-benefit analysis. The fundamental end of medicine is to help an individual sick or injured patient; from this prime goal stem the principles of non-maleficence, "Do no harm," and beneficence, "Benefit the patient."

The surgery to remove a portion of a healthy person's liver may benefit the recipient, but at considerable risk . . . [Full text of this article]

Philosophy and Religion Department, Methodist College, Fayetteville, NC 28311, USA gratiaetnatura@yahoo.com

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