Sheila A. M. McLean

Originally published in 2005. One of the leading causes of death is organ failure, that is, when one or other of the organs that run the machine we call the body gives out. However, whereas with a machine spare parts can usually replace faulty parts, in the case of humans the supply of these is limited as it is dependent on organs being obtained from living or dead donors. Due to the limitations of supply, increasing attention is being paid to alternative schemes for obtaining organs. One of these possibilities is xenotransplantation: using organs from animals. In this book, the authors examine the legal and ethical issues surrounding xenotransplantation and consider the implications for the future. As they point out, xenotransplantation represents a major deviation from standard medical practice and the possibility of transplantation of large segments of tissue, or whole organs, from animals into humans poses an entirely novel set of considerations - ethical, legal and scientific - which it is necessary to evaluate and understand.

Originally published in 2005. One of the leading causes of death is organ failure, that is, when one or other of the organs that run the machine we call the body gives out. However, whereas with a machine spare parts can usually replace faulty parts, in the case of humans the supply of these is limited as it is dependent on organs being obtained from living or dead donors. Due to the limitations of supply, increasing attention is being paid to alternative schemes for obtaining organs. One of these possibilities is xenotransplantation: using organs from animals. In this book, the authors examine the legal and ethical issues surrounding xenotransplantation and consider the implications for the future. As they point out, xenotransplantation represents a major deviation from standard medical practice and the possibility of transplantation of large segments of tissue, or whole organs, from animals into humans poses an entirely novel set of considerations - ethical, legal and scientific - which it is necessary to evaluate and understand.

Autonomy is often said to be the dominant ethical principle in modern bioethics, and it is also important in law. Respect for autonomy is said to underpin the law of consent, which is theoretically designed to protect the right of patients to make decisions based on their own values and for their own reasons. The notion that consent underpins beneficent and lawful medical intervention is deeply rooted in the jurisprudence of countries throughout the world. However, Autonomy, Consent and the Law challenges the relationship between consent rules and autonomy, arguing that the very nature of the legal process inhibits its ability to respect autonomy, specifically in cases where patients argue that their ability to act autonomously has been reduced or denied as a result of the withholding of information which they would have wanted to receive. Sheila McLean further argues that the bioethical debate about the true nature of autonomy – while rich and challenging – has had little if any impact on the law. Using the alleged distinction between the individualistic and the relational models of autonomy as a template, the author proposes that, while it might be assumed that the version ostensibly preferred by law – roughly equivalent to the individualistic model – would be transparently and consistently applied, in fact courts have vacillated between the two to achieve policy-based objectives. This is highlighted by examination of four specific areas of the law which most readily lend themselves to consideration of the application of the autonomy principle: namely refusal of life-sustaining treatment and assisted dying, maternal/foetal issues, genetics and transplantation.This book will be of great interest to scholars of medical law and bioethics.

Autonomy is often said to be the dominant ethical principle in modern bioethics, and it is also important in law. Respect for autonomy is said to underpin the law of consent, which is theoretically designed to protect the right of patients to make decisions based on their own values and for their own reasons. The notion that consent underpins beneficent and lawful medical intervention is deeply rooted in the jurisprudence of countries throughout the world. However, Autonomy, Consent and the Law challenges the relationship between consent rules and autonomy, arguing that the very nature of the legal process inhibits its ability to respect autonomy, specifically in cases where patients argue that their ability to act autonomously has been reduced or denied as a result of the withholding of information which they would have wanted to receive. Sheila McLean further argues that the bioethical debate about the true nature of autonomy – while rich and challenging – has had little if any impact on the law. Using the alleged distinction between the individualistic and the relational models of autonomy as a template, the author proposes that, while it might be assumed that the version ostensibly preferred by law – roughly equivalent to the individualistic model – would be transparently and consistently applied, in fact courts have vacillated between the two to achieve policy-based objectives. This is highlighted by examination of four specific areas of the law which most readily lend themselves to consideration of the application of the autonomy principle: namely refusal of life-sustaining treatment and assisted dying, maternal/foetal issues, genetics and transplantation.This book will be of great interest to scholars of medical law and bioethics.