http://chinatransplants.info/

This site is dedicated to information about organ transplants in China.

I created this web site because nothing like it existed when I desperately wished it did.  In the fall of 2003, I took my mother to China for a new liver. We had no choice. She was not considered eligible for a transplant in the US, even though it was the only thing that could save her life.  She didn’t have much time left.   It was our only option.

Finding any reliable information, or any information at all about going to China for a transplant was impossible. We had to figure it all out on our own, and it was the most stressful and difficult thing we have ever been though, and hopefully will ever go though.

I decided to create this site for anyone else who might want to know about going to China for this purpose. I’m not condoning it or promoting it, and hopefully you will never be in a position where you need it.   But I would have given anything for a web site like this.  The least I can do is share what I learned. 

This site is a work in progress.  I will build it based on your questions.  Please ask me anything you want to know at info@chinatransplants.com and I will publish the answers here.  Also, if any information you find on this site is unclear, or wrong, feel free to email me about it.

QUESTIONS

Why couldn't your mother get a transplant in the US?
She exceeded the UNOS criteria.  You always hear about how many people are waiting for an organ, and about how many people die waiting, but what you don't often hear about it is how many people are not even considered eligible, whose lives could be saved with a transplant.

My 58 year old mother had primary liver cancer.  Even though her cancer had not spread beyond the liver, she was considered ineligible for a transplant because the tumor was considered too big, and the chances were too high that the cancer would come back and a liver would be "wasted."

The doctors all told us a transplant would be pointless.  But I did a great deal of my own research and found a number of studies that said that someone in her condition would have a good chance with a transplant, as high as a 70 chance of living for many years.  Without a transplant she had at most a couple of months to live.  

How is your mother now?
My mother had been through hell.  Her liver tumor grew very fast in the weeks leading up to surgery.  When they removed her liver it weighed 8 pounds, compared to a normal liver which weighs about 3 pounds.  Almost all of that was tumor.  If you're not squeamish, here's a photo of the liver they took out of her.   The doctors told us that at most, she would have had a few weeks to live without the surgery. 

Because she was so sick and weak just before the transplant, having lost a great deal of weight, it has taking her a while to heal.  She was in the transplant unit for 5 weeks after surgery.  Since returning to the states, she's undergone intensive chemo to prevent the cancer from recurring, and interferon treatment for Hep C, not to mention all the other drugs.  But she's getting stronger all the time, returning to her routine.  She's starting to cook, and shop, get around and enjoy her grandkids.  

Her liver is functioning well.  Of course, we are all terrified that the cancer will come back again.    But we try and take one day at a time and pray for the best.

Why China?
After a good deal of research we realized that China was our only real option.  Here are the main reasons we chose China:

• China has made great strides with transplant surgery in recent years, with survival rates approaching those of the US.   They are even pioneering new drugs and new techniques that are being tried in the US.
• Many of the doctors there were trained in the best transplant centers in the US. 
• It was affordable, or relatively affordable
• It is possible to get an organ immediately, which was necessary given my mother didn't have much time

Is it legal to go to China for a transplant?
I guess there are two parts to this question.  Is it legal here in the US and is it legal in China. 

As far as I know, you are not breaking any US law by traveling to China to receive a transplant. 

In China, as far as I know, it is perfectly legal to receive a transplant, however the Chinese government prefers that foreigners not do it.  Why?  Because of the bad press the government has received over the source of the donor organs, which come from executed prisoners.  The government and perhaps the hospitals fear more bad press or an international incident. 

Many hospitals are very reluctant to take foreigners.  If you're of Asian descent it's a lot easier because you can blend in and go unnoticed.  (We are not Asian) There are probably only four hospitals in China with standards high enough for transplants.  I traveled to China weeks before I went with my mother, to see if I can arrange the surgery.    The surgeon I spoke with at the hospital wanted to take my mother, but the hospital turned us down for unspecified "political" reasons.  I came home defeated. 

When I went with my mother the next time, the hospital we thought we were going to also decided that they weren't admitting foreigners.  China is a very complicated place. Fortunately, we found a hospital that did take us.

So while it's technically legal for foreigners to get a transplant in China, it's by no means easy. 

How common is it for foreigners to travel to China for a transplant?
Not as common as some people think.  From a knowledgeable source I got to know while there, I was told there have probably been about one hundred foreigners, of European descent, who have received a kidney in China.  And there have probably been less than a dozen who have received a liver.  This number is much higher if you consider Japanese, Taiwanese and other overseas Asians who go to the mainland for these procedures.  No one really tracks this information, so it's impossible to know for sure.  In the hospital we were in, for the nearly two months we were there, we didn't see another Western patient the whole time.

What about the language barrier?
Very few people spoke English.  The doctors spoke a little, nurses spoke less.  It was a huge challenge and a constant source of frustration.  Fortunately, we were able to hire a translator for a reasonable price, and that helped some. 

What was the medical treatment like?
It was an odd mix of the old and new.  In some ways it was very dated.  The hospital beds were ancient, with handles, or cranks, to raise them up, and the thermometers were the old fashion mercury kind.  Then in other ways it was very modern,  with the latest million dollar MRI machines. 

When it came to personal attention, the treatment my mother received was amazing, the type of care you could never get in the US, unless you had millions of dollars.  On the other hand some of the hygiene, or lack of hygiene, took some getting used to.

While we were very nervous going in, we grew to trust the doctors.  They were very conscientious about making sure my mother was a good candidate for the surgery.  She underwent dozens of tests and scans to make sure the cancer hadn't spread.  We were told if it had spread, they wouldn't do it.  They also went out of their way to inform us of all the risks.  Even though we were paying a great deal of money for the surgery, there's no question that we could have said no at any time, and got most of our money back.  We were very impressed by the doctors.  

Check back for more.  You can ask a question by emailing info@chinatransplants.com