Raising the Dead

Ronald Munson plunges us into the tense and tangled world of organ transplantation. Using vivid, often gut-wrenching cases as points of departure, Munson shows us how transplants are performed, decisions are made, and ethical and social issues arise. Fast-paced and readable, the science and medicine lucidly explained, this book forces us to confront the human and moral dimensions of using donor organs to save lives.

Munson uses case examples to explore, explain, and try to resolve a handful of crucial problems arising from acquiring and allocating donor organs. Should "social worth" count in allotting organs? Should we ignore the "dead-donor rule" and take organs from infants born lacking a brain? Should we permit people to sell one of their kidneys? Should organs be removed from people who aren't yet brain dead? Can children become living donors? He also explores the promises and perils of transplanting animal organs into people, and the promise that stem-cell engineering will permit physicians to repair damaged organs or replace them with new copies.