ABSTRACT
The starting point of specific concerns about voluntariness in living donor transplantation (LDT), and an issue in its own right, is donor and recipient motivation. Many donors are actually very positive about their experience. The donors had a slightly different perception of the situation with 15 out of 24 saying someone else had also offered. The problem of asking donors if they experienced or complied through pressure is that most influences are of a subtle and often hard to detect nature rather than being more overt attempts at manipulation or coercion. The British Transplantation Society in its recent survey of UK transplant centres found that 15 out of 31 active in LDT took a pro-active approach to potential donors. The influence on the donor of medical experts advocating transplantation can increase after the initial blood test in that they become the main source for information about the courses of action.
