Developmental Perspective of Organ Transplantation

Abstract

Successful human transplantations of cells, tissues and organs have relatively quite a long history.  The key problem, however, always remains rejection and the side effects of preventing rejection. There exist reports of a Chinese physician named Pien Chi'ao exchanging the heart of a man with a strong spirit and weak will with another heart of a man with a weak spirit and a strong will. This was reportedly done to achieve a balance in each man. Similarly, there are reports of Roman Catholic accounts during the third-century whereby saints Damian and Cosmas replaced cancerous leg of the Roman deacon Justinian with the leg of a recently deceased Ethiopian.

It has been widely quoted that the ancient Indian Sage Charaka deals with internal medicine while Sage Sushruta includes features of organ and limb transplants. However, skin transplantations are the ones which are likely to have happened in the earliest of times. There are accounts of Indian surgeon Sushruta in the second century BC, who used autografted skin transplantation in nose reconstruction. The outcome of such attempted procedures is not documented well. Hence, in light of above quotes, it can conclusively be stated that the Hindu teachings have given more importance to the concept of soul, rather than body. There exists no reference in any of ancient Indian (hence Hindu) scriptures which discourages the donation of human organs to others who need them.