Revival: Your Life or Mine (2003): How Geoethics Can Resolve the Conflict Between Public and Private Interests in Xenotransplantation

by Martine Rothblatt

This title was first published in 2003. Xenotransplantation - the transplantation of animal organs into humans - poses a fascinating moral dilemma. Should this ability to extend the lives of millions of older people be permitted given that it might trigger a new pandemic similar to AIDS? This study examines the moral dilemma from a combination of humanistic, legalistic, bioethical, economical and technological perspectives. The first part of the book demonstrates that xenografts are the only realistic near-term technological answer to the organ shortage problem. The balance of the book is devoted to assessing whether doctrines such as the 'right to health care' trump the moral and ethical conundrums posed by xenotransplantation. The book concludes with a 'geoethical' solution that proposes authorization of xenotransplantation subject to the prior implementation of a new international organization for epidemiology and basic health care. It also suggests that the costs of operating such an organization could be covered by a global tax on xenografts.

198 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

Martine Aliana Rothblatt is an American lawyer, author, and entrepreneur. She graduated from UCLA with a MBA/JD degree in 1981, then began work in Washington, D.C. in the field of communication satellite law, and eventually in life sciences projects like the Human Genome Project. She holds a Ph.D. and is currently the founder and CEO of United Therapeutics Corp.