Science Could organ transplants save us all?

Perhaps it was the extravagant display of deadly weaponry that prompted the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, to mull on mortality at this week's military parade in Beijing.

- Ian Sample

It was breezy talk, but have advances in organ transplantation reached the stage where they can extend the lives of healthy humans as well as save those terminally ill?

For particular patients, the case for transplantation is clear. "When you've got end-stage kidney, liver or heart disease, transplantation adds years of life on the whole," says Reza Motallebzadeh, a UCL professor of renal transplantation. "It is absolutely life-saving."

A long list of organs and tissues can now be transplanted, including heart, lungs, kidneys, pancreas, liver, small bowel, skin, bone, heart valves and corneas. And more organs are being added. Earlier this year, a woman became the first in the UK to give birth after receiving a womb donated by her sister.

Around the world, demand for organ transplants outstrips supply. In Britain, the waiting list for life-saving organ transplants has never been longer. With a limited supply, organs go to those who stand to benefit the most - typically the young and terminally ill.