Trolling for Kidney Donors.....

Periodically, my comments box gets hit with requests from people seeking organs for other people. Sometimes it's a one-off, like when we were searching for a kidney for Babygirl.  But more frequently, it looks like this:

"Attention, Welcome to specialist hospital, Are you interested in selling your kidney to overcome all your financial problem, Welcome to M** Hospital. Do you want to buy a Kidney or you want to sell your kidney? Are you seeking for an opportunity to sell your kidney for money due to financial break down and you don?t know what to do, then contact us today and we shall offer you good amount of money for your Kidney we specialize for top class medical treatment like Heart Surgery, Cancer Care, Spinal fusion surgery , sleeve mastectomy surgery , and other major surgeries. Contact (k***@gmail.com) INFORMATION NEEDED: Passport Copy: First Names: Last Name: Sex: Age: Your blood group: Date of Birth: Phone Number: Occupation: Monthly Income: Reason for selling: Do you smoke?: Country: State:"

Or this:

"We are urgently in need of kidney donors in K** Hospital India for the sum of $450,000,00,All donors are to reply via Email only Email: k***hospital@gmail.com WhatsApp +91 555-555-5555"

(At least in these examples things are generally spelled correctly. In many, some from the same locations, there are misspellings which I suspect are deliberate attempts to avoid spam filters.)

$450,000 seems to be the standard going rate for a kidney, and it hasn't changed any over the past year or so.  

It's appalling from just about every conceivable angle.  

When Babygirl was waiting for her kidney transplant, someone suggested that we go to India and buy a kidney. Rupee against the dollar, it's not that expensive to stay in India, but I've no idea at all what hospital care costs. Most of the doctors are trained in Brittish-style medical schools, but the hospitals can be anywhere from world-class to third-world in quality.  But the ethical issue is this:  No one rich sells their kidney.  A system that allows for organ sales inevitalbly takes unmerciful advantage of the poor; most likely not to their ultimate benefit. (This is a bit dry, but it does cover the topic well: Bioethics of buying and selling organs)

That being said, one would think that India has an almost unlimited number of people so poor they would most happily sell an organ.  So why is it that these people are advertising over here, and for such an incredibly high price?? What's the catch?  

I almost expect that I will get requests for the email addresses and phone numbers from people who are willing to find out. I scares me more than a little. 

DeeDee