Xenotransplantation: Ethical, Regulatory, and Social Aspects

Description:

This is the first volume to comprehensively discuss the ethical, regulatory, and social aspects of xenotransplantation research.

Organized into four parts, Xenotransplantation begins by examining ethical issues around informed consent of the potential xenograft recipient, the major ethical issues encountered when doing this research on pigs, and allocation issues. Part two examines regulatory aspects from a global perspective, specifically from three major regions of the world doing xenotransplantation research currently, of which include the United States, Western Europe, and Asia. Following this, part three describes religious aspects of xenotransplantation amongst the major world religions, including Christianity, Islam, Judaism, and Hinduism. The book closes with an analysis of quantitative and qualitative studies conducted by the editors that assess the public’s perception of xenotransplantation.

Featuring original data collected by the editors, this book is an instrumental resource for all clinicians involved in the research and practice of xenotransplantation.

Preface

In mid-2018, Dr. Wayne Paris stepped off the airplane as he arrived at Birmingham’s Shuttlesworth Airport in Alabama. The city of Birmingham is not all that different from Paris’ hometown and institution in Abilene, Texas, and he was excited to spend a year-long sabbatical at The University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) developing and advancing a familiar field of interest to him—pig-to-human organ transplantation or Xenotransplantation.

While many multidisciplinary collaborations in academia surge for various reasons, the particular relationship between the three editors of this book—who hold different training and were on various career trajectories—surged from a shared passion, intrigue, stubbornness, privilege, and joy of pursuing their professional interests. How their paths crossed and coincided into the field of xenotransplantation begins in 1979 when Paris graduated with his master’s degree in Social Work from the University of Oklahoma. Prior to moving into academia in 2004, Paris worked as a Clinical Transplant Social Worker (LCSW) for 25 years in medicine and organ transplantation at the Nazih Zuhdi Transplantation Institute at Integris Baptist Medical Center in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. His clinical experience was primarily in heart, lung, and liver transplantation. In addition to his clinical work, Paris had an extensive clinical outcome research and publication practice, and presented at numerous national and international medical and social work conferences. He was active in several social work and medical societies and regularly served on national and international social work and medical meeting abstract and grant review committees during that time.

In 2004, Paris accepted an Assistant Professor position at the School of Social Work at Southern Illinois University Carbondale (SIUC). He taught across the curriculum in the undergraduate program from 2004 to 2010. While at SIUC, Paris completed his PhD in Social Work from the University of Huddersfield, Yorkshire, United Kingdom in 2006, a doctoral program that specialized in clinical outcomes research.

In 2010, Paris was recruited to serve as Graduate Program Director of the Masters of Science in Social Work at the School of Social Work at Abilene Christian University (Abilene, Texas). He served in that capacity for 5 years and directed one of the few accredited social work programs in the United States that requires a graduate thesis. After stepping down as Graduate Program Director in 2015, he reconnected with his mentor David K.C. Cooper, MD, PhD, FRCS. Dr. Cooper at that time was Co-Director of the Xenotransplant Program in the Department of Surgery at UAB and an internationally recognized leader in xenotransplant research who was making scientific progress in preparation for pig-to-human kidney clinical trials. Some final preparations for those trials recommended that, in addition to biological advancements, the development and conducting of psychosocial research about the public’s willingness to consider the procedure. This would be in line with recommendations from the World Health Organization, International Xenotransplantation Association, and United States Food and Drug Administration to secure local, “relevant opinions.”

Dr. Luz Padilla obtained her medical degree from the University of Guadalajara in Mexico. Her interest in disease prevention through evidence-based research led her to pursue a Master’s of Science in Public Health in Epidemiology in 2014 at UAB. She became faculty at UAB in 2016 and was appointed Director of Surgical Research of the Pediatric and Congenital Heart Center at UAB and Children’s of Alabama.

Dr. Daniel Hurst was, at the time, Clinical Assistant Professor at UAB teaching undergraduate bioethics, working in clinical ethics, and leading the research for the Cahaba-UAB Family Medicine Residency Program. Hurst’s training is multidisciplinary, holding two graduate degrees in theology, a MSc in Global Health and Infectious Diseases from The University of Edinburgh, and PhD in healthcare ethics from Duquesne University.

In early January 2019, Hurst, Padilla, and Paris gathered in Padilla’s office at UAB. Hurst and Paris had met just a few days earlier over coffee at the hospital’s Starbucks, introduced by a mutual friend who knew they had similar interests in bioethics. Gathered in Padilla’s office that day, what began to coalesce was the beginning of a multidisciplinary (medical, social, and ethical) group devoted to studying the ethical and social implications of xenotransplantation. Since then, the three editors have had multiple publications, research studies, and now this book in hopes to make a contribution and be better prepared as xenotransplantation makes its way to clinical trials. The editors feel fortunate to have important figures in xenotransplantation agree to collaborate and contribute their expertise in this book, and we hope the book, at least in some small way, can advance the field.