The Economics of Organ Harvesting in China Ircc 2019 1
The Economics of Organ Harvesting in China Ircc 2019 1
The Economics of Organ Harvesting in China Ircc 2019 1
IN CHINA
THE PART OF COMPANIES AND DOCTORS IN DECMORATIC
COUNTRIES IN THE ILLEGAL ORGAN HARVESTING IN CHINA
DECEMBER 2019
theircc.org/organharvesting
THE ECONOMICS OF ORGAN HARVESTING
IN CHINA
THE PART OF COMPANIES AND DOCTORS IN DECMORATIC
COUNTRIES IN THE ILLEGAL ORGAN HARVESTING IN CHINA
CONCLUSION ...................................................................................... 56
FAQ ......................................................................................................... 57
ABOUT AUTHORS .............................................................................. 60
INDEX..................................................................................................... 61
This participation is made possible through both aspects of this issue, two sides of the coin – one
is the supply of organs and the other is the demand for them. While it has been made clear who is
taking part in the supply chain of organ harvesting within China, and what the horrendous source
of these organs is, the demand is generated not only through Chinese citizens, but also transplant
tourists from democratic countries. These tourists are not completely disconnected from the
western doctors, medical agencies, and other means, to which they turn to, mainly due to the
lengthy waiting times for organ transplant in the West. The various areas of possible participation
are illustrated by the infographic below:
Picture 1 The process of illegal organ harvesting
The next part constitutes a system of its own as the process could not exist without the recipients
of the organs. The invitation to transplant tourists is not limited to just online offers on a website,
while the transplantation itself is also relatively often carried out in a third country – not the one
of the recipient, and not the one which sourced the organ, an attractive option for anyone set on
illegal organ harvesting. These transplant tourists may come from a country where medical
tourism to China is not supported, but regardless of that, they still often need to come up with a
way of how to leave their transplant waiting list, decide where they will receive their long-term
transplant aftercare from, and perhaps prevent some state offices from finding out what they did.
Because of the business nature of the crime, many aspects are absolutely interconnected. A
normal criminal would not record his own crimes, but when it comes to illegal organ harvesting
on a large scale, it is inevitable. In order to create a functional business and maintain its scale and
stability, the idea behind selecting a group, the first item on the infographic above, is not
coincidental, nor is the defamation, or imprisonment in labor camps, detention center or prisons.
The driving force behind this whole system is thus not the force visible to the public eye, but the
think-tank that oversees the income and business side of it. All of that demands a structured,
orderly list of past and present victims. We call this side the business offer. A lot of reports and
studies have described this part.
And it is not only the prisons that are supported by the medical field. The medical field requires
material support consisting of medical consumables, medicaments, and various devices, which is
the part our western companies participate in. It cannot be said that they are isolated from the
whole picture, since the Chinese doctors and hospitals are crucial not only for the recipients and
the care provided after the transplant procedure, but also for the demand and the medical tests
done on the donors. Even the testing of a product imported through a western company, and used
by Chinese professionals, needs to take into account the detestably original methods of illegal
transplantation in China, and from then on serves as a weapon in the deadly procedures.
Arguably, the doctors may not be only Chinese, but it is hard to imagine a doctor from a
democratic society, who could just allow their patient to die.
The right side of the infographic, called demand, illustrates the sale of human body parts,
removed from donors against their will. The transplant tourists do register for these not only on
the usual waiting lists in the hospitals in their country of origin, but also through various medical
What follows is not only the long-term convalescence of patients in China, but also possibly after
the return to their country, the subsequent treatment possibly needed due to complications, or
another transplant procedure. We enclose below an actual order form for transplants in China:
Picture 2 Still-functioning request form for organ transplantation in China
Source: https://medicaltourism.com/Forms/RequestMoreInformation.aspx
Our report focuses specifically on the doctors in the countries of origin of the recipients, their
stance toward illegal organ harvesting and evidence of transplant tourists traveling to China. We
have also investigated the western companies from the perspective of possible complicity in
supplying the medical consumables and medicaments to China, which enables the organ
harvesting on a massive scale, the reason being the massive import of these products into China3.
The annual reports and data from various business services make the profit and scale of
participation obvious.
When it comes to the evidence, we work only with provable facts, so relatively speaking, even
though the numbers in western doctors’ studies may sometimes look smaller than the expected
scale of organ harvesting in China, it can be ascertained that the real numbers are much bigger.
Especially since China does not have a thorough system of organ donation, a waiting list or even
a correctly functioning transplant system. Chinese minister of health, Huang Jiefu, in 2015
claimed that China had only 130 cases of organ donation between the 1980s and 2009. 4
The whole of China started to recover from the aftermath of the Cultural Revolution in the 1980s.
The start of economic reforms significantly helped to alleviate the consequences of the Cultural
Revolution while the ongoing changes in Europe and Russia contributed to the freedom of
thought, as well as the freedom of minorities and ideas about the state of law of the students in
China. This culminated in the push for change in 1989 at Tiananmen Square in Beijing, an effort
to abolish the dominance of communism in China, which resulted in a flood of reports and
solidarity about the violent suppression all over the world, despite the inevitable censorship.
It was at this point that the world had the chance to see the true nature of the communist party of
China. What followed was seemingly a period of time where the party “took it easy”, probably to
reduce the external pressure and remove the various barriers to business which were imposed on
it. At this time, in the 1990s, free thought still existed in China.
However, the atrocities were just being hidden behind the mask of an emerging production and
economic superpower. One of them was the harvesting of organs from both political prisoners
and genuine criminals5. These would then be received by the communist officials higher up the
ladder, in order to preserve their health. Starting as a solution for individuals, it has developed
into one of the main goals of the communist party today6. It was the reason behind the medical
experiments in the 1990s, especially in the region of the Uyghurs, as well as in Tibet, where the
population has been subjected to an assimilation process for dozens of years.
All of this points toward an absolute lack of organs, yet China was still commercially supplying
them out to transplant tourists.
The question is: How did this come to be on such a massive scale? The context of the last few
decades in China could perhaps provide an answer, as China already had an established model
into which it put its organ harvesting strategy. The model is called the “class enemy”, a long-time
practice of the Communist party of China11. In the past, this label was put on farmers, rightists,
intellectuals, workers in the financial and industrial sector, members of religious groups, students,
but also various groups of loyal members of the communist party and others. The Chinese
communist party had two reasons to continue this social practice. On the one hand, it silences any
rebellious voices among the citizens, as nobody could guess who might be targeted the next time.
And on the other hand, the psychological burden was diverting their focus from inner issues in
the country and the mistakes of the communist party. Although everyone was still aware of them,
the party went to great lengths to hide them.
What followed after the 1990s was a gradual ban of Falun Gong12, a spiritual practice, due to its
popularity. The official state estimation back then presented a number of 70-100 million Chinese
citizens doing this exercise. That number included employees of the government, police, army,
communist officials, judges and others, whose loyalty was crucial for the communist party.
What followed after the ban, supported by a massive defamatory campaign and public
condemnation, was the 6-10 office. As a special office with extensive powers intent solely on the
persecution of Falun Gong, it was brandishing the internal directives of the party to make its goal
official. At this time, practicing Falun Gong became an anti-state activity. The outcome of these
steps were mass arrests, the creation of membership lists and torture resulting in death, with the
aim of having these practitioners renounce their faith.
The social practice of “class enemy” on Falun Gong intensified, and together with the fact that
the practitioners were particularly healthy, and there was a good amount of them, they became
the ideal target for illegal organ harvesting. The party utilized the media at its disposal, airing
defamatory campaigns against Falun Gong through public television, resulting in a strong
aversion between the group and the population, as it does to this day.
Once the party secured a stable and potentially endless source of organs, cut off from the
compassion of the average citizen, the harvesting became more systematic. The previous
experiments in the region of Uyghurs were transformed into a full-scale operation. The demand
for good health may have only become more pronounced in the world, and the waiting times for
an organ in many countries were far longer than that which was required, which gave way to an
organ business operation targeting other countries. However, the other groups were not spared,
and the people in Tibet13, where organ transplantation is also taking place14, are also persecuted.
Uyghurs face enormous detention centers, and the excuse of suppressing terrorism is used to
imprison them by the hundreds of thousands or millions. Based on recent information from the
US15, they are undergoing various medical tests16, and witnesses say some of them are
The demand side of this crime is no less despicable than the source of the supply. The practice of
removing human body parts is one where people die as a side-effect of a business practice. The
contributors are not just the doctors operating at the table, but any doctors in western countries
aware of any crucial information as well as companies supplying China with all the medical
necessities. From an individual perspective there are also all the brokers and middlemen, utilizing
various means to invite a transplant tourist, who may be utterly unaware about the illegality of
the whole process, and that someone innocent may have died just to give them a kidney, a heart,
lungs, or a liver.
Our research does not focus on the issue of brokers and middlemen, although any findings might
be valuable, as it is a rather extensive topic on which any information could be quite scarce. Our
scope of research into the western companies and doctors contributes to a few possible leads into
this issue.
Our concerns are as follows: Are western companies partaking in this crime against humanity?
And if yes, is it consciously or unconsciously? And are they responsible for these crimes? If so,
should the authorities in their countries of residence initiate an official investigation? Could the
process of illegal organ harvesting from prisoners of conscience be stopped altogether, were these
companies to cease to provide their goods to the Chinese market? Do all the doctors in the
countries of transplant tourists know about the issue of illegal organ harvesting? Is it possible
they silently accept the situation? Should the professional international organizations take a
clearer stand? Can the western doctors who take part in this process knowingly be held criminally
responsible?
For some of these questions, our research may provide an answer or at least hint at an answer.
The others will require further research. These concerns should also be asked about by the
relevant authorities in each state, as the dark business practice which operates based on the
passive or active contribution of many individuals or organizations and companies in most of the
democratic countries today constitutes a crime. It may seem that many medical, human rights,
business or foreign policy institutions have nothing to do with it, but some of the participants are
within the scope of their field of focus. The overall goal of our research is to more clearly define
both the issue and the situation, so we can ask the official authorities in relevant countries the
proper questions and ask them to act.
2.1 INTRODUCTION
The first half of our research examines the individual medical studies written by doctors from
democratic countries, which serve as evidence of existing transplant tourists from certain
countries traveling to China for their organs. The result is the number of at least 20 countries and
regions affected globally. The analysis of these studies led us to the discovery that western
doctors do know about a lot of inconsistencies and facts behind the transplantation procedures
and tourism to China, but they do not publicly comment on its ethical issues, probably due to the
pressing need to save a patient’s life or to maintain confidentiality. While traveling for a
transplant – through official channels – can be alright, the mystery behind the source of the
organ, if it was donated voluntarily, and if someone died for it, should not be, in the case of
China, left unanswered. Professionals in any field should not support the lack of information and
ignorance. The practice of illegal organ harvesting is equivalent to contract killing, even if the
killers are hired without revealing their identities and not obviously stated as a part of the
agreement.
While the nature of the crime says so, it can’t be approached as a conscious criminal activity, as
many things, including the part some western doctors or individuals may play, would need an
official government investigation. In the case of doctors, we presume that all doctors, when it
comes to certain behaviors of their patients, are not in the know, and do cooperate when asked. In
fact, they are not likely to know at all, as the brokers may ask them even before they visit the
relevant transplant center in their country, which may even be before they are officially placed on
the waiting list. To have these patients undergo the official procedure is definitely not something
they would want, and so the process may be very swift. China then comes as the answer for these
cases, as it has the largest black market for organs. Now we should ask – where do these brokers
get the access to these registers from? It may be as shady as the communist justice these
“executed prisoners” are getting in China, as we partially investigated later in the report.
On the following pages, we look into a part of the process of the organ harvesting business,
which has existed, as the evidence points out, at the very least since the 1990s. In the second
section of our report, we come to the conclusion that there are 20, and with more open criteria28,
companies that do support this sort of business with their technology and products, and benefit
from it financially, regardless of whether they are aware of it. They do take part in a business
which can’t be said to be in any way legal if compared to the principles of the democratic legal
system.
The crimes in China do stack up upon each other. At the very least, there is a crime against
medical ethics and morality, enshrouded in a crime against humanity, and the western companies
indirectly help the perpetrators to achieve more solid results.
Common sense would tell us that whenever a country has an issue with an organ donation
system, or an issue with the organ removal practice, members of these organizations would know
about it.
If even the individual doctors were to point out their experience with transplant tourism to China,
and perhaps some strange occurrences, any medical association, like the mentioned WMA, or the
Transplant Society, should know far more. Inevitably, individual doctors being in the know, then
also means the major medical organizations being in the know.
2.3 CONTEXT
As is written above, illegal organ harvesting can be divided into two parts – the first one, where
innocent people die during the harvesting itself, and the second one as the means of procuring
and selling the organ, using illegal and unethical ways. The international medical community is
seemingly aware of both of these.
The international medical community recognizes that Chinese doctors can use executed prisoners
as a source of their organs which supports their whole organ procurement system. Two medical
journals, The Journal of Clinical Investigation28 and The Journal of Heart and Lung
Transplantation29 specifically refer in their statements to China, where the practice of
transplantation significantly expanded in the last 20 years. One of these statements also notices
the disproportionate situation of the demand and the supply, stating that “This disparity in the
supply of organs is a particular problem in China, where rapid expansion of the capacity to
perform transplants has not been accompanied by the development of a system for recovering
organs from those who die in hospitals while on life support, as is international practice. There is
almost no systematic recovery of voluntarily donated cadaver organs. No regional or national
system exists for soliciting consent to donate organs in advance from those who die or their
relatives after death. Unfortunately, the evidence is clear that some physicians in China, in an
effort to perform more transplants, are engaged in a practice that violates basic standards of
medical ethics and human rights, namely the use of organs from executed prisoners“. They could
have taken an example from the Transplant Society, which published an article in 2006 entitled
“The Transplantation Society's Policy on Interactions with China“30.
However, the use of executed prisoners can perhaps even be agreed with. Both the professional
and the general public can defend the logic of having a criminal, understood as someone who
deserved such a high penalty, using his life for a human contributing to the society. But this kind
of argument can’t be valid when it comes to the equivalents of lighter penalties – in our system
imprisonment for a certain number of years – or political prisoners. Yet publicly available
evidence shows us another possibility – that perhaps, in China, some of the death penalties, were
handed out unfairly. Below are a few cases we have found.
As was mentioned at the beginning, the illegal organ harvesting in China has a different avenue
for organ procurement as well, harvesting organs from executed prisoners of conscience, or
political prisoners. Credible reports, which have shed light on this issue, are affirmed on the
government level33, 34. That is supported by many other research studies, for example one by
Schiano and Rhodes, revealing that the transplant numbers in China do not match even the
number of executed prisoners based on the database on the death penalty35. Both the USA36 and
the European Union37 have condemned these atrocities. The Chine regime therefore uses quite
unusual organ sources, different from those in the official narrative.
How it can be possible that the medical professionals themselves have not yet attempted to get to
the bottom of this crime, or are not engaged more in public talks about it? One of the reasons for
this could perhaps be the nature of the crime, which not only has to do something with human
rights, but also the economy, and is not limited to just the field of medical ethics. The other
reason could be the perspective of a doctor, as it consists of the Hippocratic Oath38, which is
practiced as a part of the tradition at many universities even today, and places great importance
on a doctor’s conscience. It takes into account the possible threats of poison and others, but there
is no clear answer what to do, if you come to know about incorrect medical practice related to a
different medical professional, or which even happens in a different country under a different
legal system.
The oath also places importance on keeping the patients’ secrets private – which can mean in this
situation not revealing the country of destination they went to for an organ, if there is at least a
small chance it could compromise the patient. The other logical view, which could be relevant to
any transplant professional, could sound like this: “I will send a patient to China, even if it could
be unethical, because otherwise, someone will have to die for sure – my patient.”
The following pages thus do consist of research done with the belief that many doctors know
much more than they let on, but are not actively spreading this information. A belief, which was
somewhat confirmed by the results of this chapter.
It is also important to note that while the medical studies do mention sometimes cases of, for
example, only 20 transplant tourists to China, and the number looks small in comparison to any
kind of estimation of the scope of illegal organ harvesting in China, the results are based on just
2.4 METHODOLOGY
The methodology of a scoping study was used, as defined by Davis and others39. The framework
implemented was performed by Arksey and O’Malley40, going from identifying the research
questions and relevant studies, proceeding next with the selection of studies and then
summarizing the data. No consultation with any stakeholders was done prior to the research.
The first one we will mention is from 2016, titled Interviews With Patients Who Traveled From
Macedonia/Kosovo, The Netherlands, and Sweden for Paid Kidney Transplantations. It is
focused on transplant tourists and reveals a case of a patient from the Netherlands who travelled
to China for an organ41. He states that the people in China are used to pay for everything and that
the business (with organs) is still going on, as long as you can pay. His operation cost him EUR
25,000.
The second study, titled On Patients Who Purchase Organ Transplants Abroad42 went on to
analyze information about transplantation tourism in general. Published in 2016, it uses the data
of 45 patients, who travelled to foreign countries for an organ, one of which was China.
The third study from 2007 was done as research on 290 Dutch citizens. The forms43 they filled
out say that 34% of these patients travelled both outside of Western Europe as well as to North
America for an organ.
UNITED STATES
A medical study titled Transplant tourism: Outcomes of United States residents who undergo
kidney transplantation overseas45, from 2006, focuses on 10 patients seeking an organ abroad,
where one of them went to China.
The study Transplant tourism in the United States: a single-center experience46, put together by…
then reveals more information. Just one transplant center – The University of California, Los
Angeles (UCLA), came to know about 33 transplant patients who went on to obtain a kidney
outside of the US. 14 of them went to China, over 40% of the total number.
The medical study, Transplants in Foreign Countries Among Patients Removed from the US
Transplant Waiting List47, from 2008 is a research report that observed the number of patients
withdrawing from the waiting list on account of getting an organ abroad. They came to the
conclusion that there were 97 patients in total that went to China between 2000 and 2006.
However, the criteria for counting patients were quite narrow and the research was based on
waiting list removal records. While the study is more or less thorough, the results do not make
sense in comparison with the relatively massive number of transplant centers in the US and the
fact that just one transplant center from an earlier study had 14 transplant tourists to China.
Moreover, the last study mentioned below indicates that some transplant tourists skip the step of
seeking help within their country. However, the major, inevitable flaw of this research is that
patients who gave the reason for withdrawal from the waiting list as “becoming too well” for a
transplant are not counted, as that is what everyone would feel after getting an organ abroad. This
concludes that even if doctors in a given country were to do their best, and do a very good job, to
ascertain the transplant tourism numbers, the end result is still inconclusive, possibly very far
The last study, Transplant Tourism in China: A Tale of Two Transplants49, then gives a critical
piece of information – that some people would actually first seek a transplant in China, without
ever consulting the professionals in their country. In this case, a family of a 12-years old girl
contacted Chinese doctors and when it was confirmed that they could receive an organ they
contacted a team in the US to see if they were willing to fly with them over to China and carry
out the transplant procedure there. This happened in 1998 – when the online and other means of
securing a transplant abroad were arguably more difficult than today.
CANADA
The medical study Opportunities to deter transplant tourism exist before referral for
transplantation and during the workup and management of transplant candidates50, from 2012,
mentions about 93 patients from British Columbia in Canada that were waiting for an organ. It
took 2 years on average before they withdrew from the waiting list and travelled abroad to
resolve their situation. A portion of them never even completed a medical examination before
leaving the country. A total of 40 of these travelled to China for an organ, over 40%.
But the next finding this study confirms is quite crucial: “We recognize that some of the
individuals who underwent a transplant evaluation in British Columbia may have been trying to
obtain test results or medications to facilitate transplantation abroad“, and also that „We found
that a significant proportion of transplant tourists had potential living donors contact our
program. This was somewhat surprising and in contrast to the fact that 45% (41/93) of transplant
tourists never had any contact with the transplant program in British Columbia before pursing
transplantation through tourism.“
The obvious question then is, how could potential living donors, or their representatives, know
that somebody is waiting for an organ? The only possible conclusion is that they somehow
acquired access to the whole system and that the data of patients are not safe – and also the fact
that the number of patients contacted in this way and then withdrawing from these lists due to
various reasons could be enormous. The study observed cases between 2000 and 2008. These
organ tourists were identified through an electronic database which every patient who wants to
have his or her immunosuppressive drugs paid for by the state, has to sign into.
A medical study titled Commercial renal transplantation: A risky venture? A single Canadian
centre experience51, mentions 10 Canadian citizens who went abroad for a kidney transplant
between 2001 and 2007. While the abstract does not specify the country, another study confirms
four of them went to China52.
A second study, Trend and Outcome of Korean Patients Receiving Overseas Solid Organ
Transplantation between 1999 and 200557, goes deeper. The authors did a survey across Korean
hospitals in 2006. The results indicate that the first transplant tourism occurred in 1999, when a
patient went to China for a kidney. It also found that 966 patients traveled to China between 1999
and 2005, of which 462 obtained a kidney and 504 lungs.
A third study from 2011, Long-term outcomes of kidney allografts obtained by transplant
tourism: observations from a single center in Korea58, mentions 87 patients. While it is not
apparent that they went to China, another study59 uses this one as a source for that, and confirms
China as the country of destination. It also points out that the organs available there are of a lower
quality.
A study by Yosuke Shimazono60, The state of the international organ trade: a provisional picture
based on integration of available information, published in 2007 in the bulletin of the World
Health Organization, is quite informative. It says that 12,000 kidney and liver transplants took
place in 2005 in China, which already exceeds the official number – particularly when we
consider that other organs were transplanted as well. WHO indirectly admits this way that the
official numbers published by China are not exactly accurate. It also mentions 73 and then 124
transplant tourists that went from South Korea to China for an organ.
Some interesting information is also provided by the medical study, Trend and outcome of
Korean patients receiving overseas solid organ transplantation between 1999 and 200561, from
2010, which proves that the number of transplant tourists to China from this country rapidly grew
between 2001 and 2005.
TAIWAN
A study Clinical analysis of 100 renal transplant recipients back from the People's Republic of
China to Taiwan,62 from 2000, reports on 100 patients who sought an organ in China. Another
study, Caring for overseas liver transplant recipients: Taiwan primary family caregivers'
experiences in mainland China63, from 2010 then refers to 19 patients who needed a liver
transplant and saw China as the solution as well.
Similarly, the study Motivations and decision-making dilemmas of overseas liver transplantation:
Taiwan recipients' perspectives64 from 2011 found 14 patients in the same situation and looked
into what their motivation to do so was.
The next one, De novo malignancy is associated with renal transplant tourism65, also from 2011,
then focuses on the quality of the organs that 215 patients obtained in China and in another one,
Outcome of foreign residents undergoing deceased donor liver transplantation in China: a single-
center experience in Taiwan66, a total of 64 such cases were found. The last one, titled On
UNITED KINGDOM
A medical study, On Patients Who Purchase Organ Transplants Abroad,68 from 2016 mentions
12 patients who went from Britain to China for a transplant.
SINGAPORE
As is the case with United Kingdom, the data is not publicly available for Singapore either.
However, another study, On Patients Who Purchase Organ Transplants Abroad69, mentions 4
patients that received a transplant in China.
EGYPT
The study, Clinical outcomes for Saudi and Egyptian patients receiving deceased donor liver
transplantation in China,70 mentions 28 Egyptians who traveled to China from three transplant
centers between 2003 and 2007. It also concludes that the end result is worse for these patients
than if they had obtained an organ in their own country.
A report from an institute in Egypt, Patients seeking liver transplant turn to China: outcomes of
15 Egyptian patients who went to China for a deceased-donor liver transplant71, from 2008
observed 15 such patients. Two of them actually died after their transplant while still being in
China. Finally, a study, Problem of living liver donation in the absence of deceased liver
transplantation program: Mansoura experience72, from 2014 found 7 such transplant tourists.
SAUDI ARABIA
A study by a nephrology unit, Commercial kidney transplantation: trends, outcomes and
challenges-a single-centre experience, from 2012 in Nigeria mentions 1 patient who visited
China73 for a transplant.
Another study, Clinical Outcomes for Saudi and Egyptian Patients Receiving Deceased Donor
Liver Transplantation in China74, from 2010 speaks about 46 such cases, and then another one
from 2016 reveals two of them75.
The interest in transplant tourism from Saudi Arabia is also confirmed by the bulletin of WHO
that in its article, Dilemma over live-donor transplantation76, from 2007 mentions China as a
destination for patients seeking an organ.
AUSTRALIA
When it comes to Australia, a study, Outcome of overseas commercial kidney transplantation: an
Australian perspective77, from 2005, mentions 7 patients in total who travelled to China for an
organ. The fact that the first of them went to China already in 1993, marking Australia as one of
the earliest countries to have transplant tourists to China, is rather interesting information.
HONG KONG
There is no doubt that citizens of Hong Kong can travel to China for an organ. The study,
Follow-up of Chinese liver transplant recipients in Hong Kong81, from 2009 mentions 177
patients and points out the organs were of quite a bad quality. Another study, Experience of Hong
Kong patients awaiting kidney transplantation in mainland China82, then mentions 12 patients.
NIGERIA
A study, Commercial kidney transplantation: trends, outcomes and challenges-a single-centre
experience83, from 2012 found patients who traveled outside their country for an organ transplant,
with China being one of the destinations.
OMAN
One of the studies we found during our research mentions transplant tourists from Oman to
China, titled Transplant tourism and invasive fungal infection84, and published in 2018.
JAPAN
WOIPFG, a non-profit organization focused on the investigation of the persecution of Falun
Gong in China, reveals an archive of a webpage of a transplant center in China in their report,
which says that most of the patients come from Japan85.
ISRAEL
A doctor named Jacob Lavee said that he first came across organ harvesting in 2005, when
actually his very own patient, who was placed on a transplant waiting list, came to him, and
revealed that he could go to China for a heart transplant – after two weeks. The patient knew the
exact time of the transplantation procedure86.
The evidence featured above indicates that 20 countries and regions in the world, at the very
least, send transplant tourists to China for organ transplants. In some cases as early as 1992
(Malaysia) or 1993 (Australia), a time during which the transplant business in China was still in
the making.
A significant portion of the studies point out the inadequate quality of the transplanted organs in
China and toward an increasing trend in transplant tourism to this country (Malaysia, Korea). The
data from the US reveals that patients may sometimes skip the step of seeking professional help
within their country altogether. Although we have only one such case, it is a significant find,
since it makes it obvious that a lot of transplant tourists are absolutely beyond any possible means
of tracking them.
The case in Canada then hints at the existence of a systematic illegal organ trade on an
international scope. The patients were contacted beforehand, even before they came for an
examination to the transplant center88. The approach of the doctors indicates that it was not the
doctors themselves leaking the information, and so it was proactively gathered using other
means. This calls for an official investigation by medical associations and societies.
Context is then finally provided also by a certain study from 201689. While it’s not only focused
on China, it provides a valuable picture of who receives money from transplant tourists. The
research found that 158 patients paid the donor directly, 22 of them a broker, 5 the hospital and 2
a private company. The global transplantation landscape already suffers from such a practice and
there is no reason to think that when it comes to China it will be any better.
The Chinese media also published news in 2016 that airports in China opened an express lane for
transporting human organs90. All of this paints a picture of an international transplant business
since 1992 in a minimum of 20 countries in the world.
Doctors Delmonico and Budiani-Saberi in their study, Organ Trafficking and Transplant
Tourism: A Commentary on the Global Realities91, mention that it’s possible for a transplant to
happen in a third country – not the one of the recipient or the one of the donor.
That means the final scope of any such business is not limited to just the country sourcing the
organs, and for the reasons mentioned above, the official methods are never enough to ascertain
the actual numbers of transplant tourists, although any investigation would be very valuable, as
non-transparent transplant procedures enable any criminal activities to go unpunished.
Be it the testimony of Enver Tohti92 who said that he harvested organs from a still-living person
in China in 1995, or the reports about the illegal organ harvesting from Christians, Uyghurs,
Tibetans and Falun Gong, there is no doubt that the need to change the situation is pressing.
3.2 CONTEXT
Investigating the western companies, who could be knowingly or unknowingly taking part in the
illegal organ harvesting in China, requires us to pose a question – what might the total scope of
their participation be?
The Sweden Council for Business and Investments believes that up to 92% of the medical
technology devices in China come from foreign companies, which is documented in their report
“The market with medical devices, business Sweden – China”, published in 201698. China
Briefing also reported that “China is very dependent on imports from the outside, when it comes
to medical devices and supplies”99. This summarizes that most of the medical devices are
obviously being imported, and are not made in China – perhaps if we put aside the possibility of
manufacturing them in the ventures of Chinese and foreign companies. It may not be limited to
just the medical equipment, as both drugs and general medical supplies can be helpful as well.
The research was done using the methodology of scoping studies as defined by Davis and others,
as was the case with the previous chapter107. We have used various internet search keywords to
find a list of companies that were in the transplant business – or have the possibility of being in it.
The total number amounted to several dozen companies. From then on, we looked into their
products, and through keyword searches tried to confirm if they are useful for transplantation.
The same was repeated for their relation to China.
Similarly to our previous research, we used the framework by Arksey and O’Malley108. First we
identified the research question and relevant studies – these were filtered through a keyword
search – and then we proceeded with the summary and so on. However, we did no consultation
with stakeholders, as any questions – and possible answers – from the western companies could
provide biased data and results.
The list of companies, as stated before, was created through an online search. The keywords used
(with small variations) were: organ preservation company; organ transplantation company;
medical companies in China; western medical companies in China. Next came the other part,
where we searched for these companies on the SEC (U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission)
and on Bloomberg. For companies outside of SEC, we briefly tried to look into the relevant SEC
counterparts of their countries, but either the data was not available, or the difficulty of procuring
such data was abnormally high due to both the lack of the system’s simplicity and our
understanding of the language.
Some of the companies indicated profits only in Asia, without a specified country. Such
companies were included in the final results as well, since the other types of evidence confirm
China.
The next process consisted again of online search, with the keywords being [the name of the
company] + China, or [name of company] + Chinese revenues, with slight variations. We also
looked into the annual reports of these companies, if available, and generally into the stock
market reports.
The Chinese evidence comes from the online search as well, which was conducted through the
search engines Baidu and Google. The keywords used were “[name of company/product in
English] + 器官移植“. We did not use a VPN service which made certain websites unavailable.
The criteria for exclusion from the list were a lack of evidence, either the earnings in Asia,
especially in China, or the lack of any traces of online sources. Sometimes the first reason simply
occurred because the company was not listed on the SEC or Bloomberg. However, we have still
included a small number of companies where we were not able to get a direct report on their
profits in China, since their connection to the transplant industry was obvious. We also
summarized the relevance of the connection at the end of every company’s data.
Lifeline Scientific mainly has a “box for kidneys”, an organ preservation solution which
maintains the healthy conditions of an organ for some time before it gets transplanted into the
recipient. As a company, it fully focuses on products and services related to cell, tissue and organ
transplants. It was established in 1998, as was its subsidiary company, Organ Recovery Systems
– also focused on organ preservation. Lifeline Scientific was bought in 2016 by a Chinese
company.
An article from 2015 says that the “LifePort Kidney Transporter is currently used in many of
China's largest transplant hospitals under clinical observation research protocols funded by China
Health Ministry grants.“109
It is known that before Lifeline was sold to SGM, in 2013, China was their third largest
market110, and the company made “significant investments”111 in China. This means the back-
then still US company was operating in China for three years. These “boxes” are also in at least
the 13 biggest Chinese hospitals, as the company reported already in 2014112.
A year after, in 2015, Lifeline sold so many units of the Kidney Transporter in China that the
revenue went up to 3.3 million dollars113 and the plan was to supply these boxes to 169 transplant
centers.
Chinese doctors also mention the LifePort Transporter in their medical study114.
Findings from Chinese sources
The use of this product for transplantation is also confirmed by medical studies written by
Chinese doctors. One of them speaks about 52 cases115 where the “box” was used, another about
26 cases116, and a different one about 64117. The last one then mentions 309 cases118 .
Stock market & other information
The company is delisted from public trading on the market which makes the amount of revenue
in China it receives unknown. The reason for this is its sale to the Chinese SMG in 2016.
Relevance
Proven revenue in China, and the use of the Lifeline Scientific product for organ preservation in
the biggest Chinese hospitals, including probably all official transplant centers. It was bought by
a Chinese company in 2016.
Veloxis is focused on the improvement of the quality of life of transplant patients. One of its
products is the immunosuppressive drug Envarsus XR, which finds its use in transplantation.
In 2017, Veloxis reported an agreement with the Chinese company Chiesi Farmaceutici on the
sales of Envarsus XR in China and Taiwan. Chiesi distributes its products in China, and the
Chinese revenue for Veloxis for 2017 amounted to EUR 81 million120.
While it could seem feasible to count the amount of transplantations per year based on the sale of
immunosuppressive drugs in China, it is quite impossible, as while we know for example that the
immunosuppressive drug market had a volume of 10 billion yuan in 2016119, an objective
comparison would require us to compare it with the volumes of other big countries in the world.
That is why we do not use this, or similar data in this report to arrive at any such conclusions.
Findings from Chinese sources
A Chinese doctor published a study about the use of Envarsus XR in 2015121, 122.
It was not possible to find direct revenue from China as the business side is seemingly fully in the
hands of Chiesi Farmaceutici.
Relevance
Roche is also known partially for its immunosuppressive drugs, like Zenapax (also known as
Daclizumab123) for the prevention of the acute rejection of a transplant, and Cellcept (also known
as mycophenolate mofetil), used for the same purpose.
The findings from English sources revealed that Roche Holding has quite a successful business
presence in China. A report from Q1 of 2019 for investors lets us know that the international
revenue went up by 17%, particularly because of China124. A year before that, Roche opened a
research center in China125.
Roche may also have lost a bottom line when it comes to testing its products, as Cellcept was
tested on the organs of Chinese prisoners126. But it’s quite reasonable to imagine that more
western companies did similar tests – or, inevitably, that’s probably how China tested their
products before approving them.
Findings from Chinese sources
Chinese sources tell us the price of Cellcept in China127 and confirm its usage through a medical
study from a Chinese doctor, published in 2016128. Zenapax is confirmed by a study from
2005129, and for the second time – under its other name, Daclizumab – also by a study from
Symposium in China from 2010130. Lastly, an article in a medical journal from 2013 mentions it
as well131. This evidence makes it clear that immunosuppressive drugs from Roche have been
used in China for a long time.
Stock market & other information
Table 1 Revenue of Roche based on the country of origin
(in millions of Swiss francs)
2015 2016 2017 2018
North America 21019 22043 24019 27036
Europe 13277 13845 13750 13602
Asia-Pacific 9654 10672 6824 7689
> China 2996 3307 - 4515
>> Pharmaceutics 1663 1721 - 2307
>> Diagnostics 1333 1586 - 2208
> The rest of Asia 3010 3154 6824 3174
Japan 3648 4211 4214 4175
Latin America 2832 2681 3024 2870
Africa, Australia and
1363 1335 1468 1474
Oceania
Source: compiled based on data from Bloomberg
Relevance
Roche used Chinese prisoners for testing its transplant product, despite the fact that Chinese
doctors do not uphold medical ethics in this area132, and it’s unclear if these prisoners really gave
their consent. The Chinese doctors may have actually tested all the products of western
companies in China this way.
It was also demonstrated that Roche gets a significant portion of its revenue from China and takes
part in the transplantation business there.
Articles136 point out that China is Pfizer’s biggest market, and the company itself is seen as a
leader of western pharmaceutical companies conducting business there. In 2019, Pfizer also hired
600 new salespeople137. A subsidiary company of Pfizer, Upjohn, also had revenue totaling 2.4
billion dollars in China in 2018138.
More accurate revenue of Pfizer is known from 2017, where China makes up 6.8% of the total
revenue of Pfizer (in other words 3.9 billion USD from a total of 57.2 billion USD). The amount
of Chinese revenue went up by 26%, in comparison with the previous year.
When it comes to Rapamune, it can be found that its global market revenue is 283 million USD,
and Asia (in general) is in third place when divided by regions, amounting to 100 million USD.
Relevance
Proven increasing revenue in China and sales of an immunosuppressive drug used for
transplantation there.
Cryolife has a product called BioGlue, which, in simple terms, is a “glue for medical operations“.
It is also used for heart transplants139. The company has been trying to get approval in China for
BioGlue since 2014140. In 2017, it was discovered that BioGlue was being tested141 in China in
multiple clinics for the purpose of future sales. BioGlue is already being sold in the Asia-Pacific
area, where its revenue in the first half of 2019 also increased in comparison with 2018142.
Findings from the Chinese sources
Bloomberg Terminal revealed in 2018 that Cryolife gets 55% of its revenue from the US. The
rest of it, without being divided country by country, increased from 18 billion USD in 2009 to
118 billion USD in 2018. Cryolife thus has an expansive approach to global business, which
should be increasingly evident in China once BioGlue has been approved.
Relevance
Long-term plans to sell a product used in heart transplantation in China, and a proven record of it
being tested at several Chinese clinics.
Intuitive Surgical makes Da Vinci robots, which facilitate the performing of medical operations
for surgeons. These robots can be used in transplantation as well, which is proven by a medical
study about a kidney transplant144.
Just one of the robots costs around 2 million dollars145. The first one was sold to China in 2014,
and today there are more than 70 such robots in mainland China and 10 in Hong Kong. The use
of Da Vinci robots in China repeatedly breaks world records – the yearly average usage of one
robot was 394 times in 2017146.
The company plans to sell 154 more such robots in China by the end of 2020, which would bring
in over 300 million dollars147.
Findings from Chinese sources
The hospital gynecology and birth department in China did its first uterus transplant using a Da
Vinci robot in November 2015148.
There were 42 such robots in total in China in 2015, of which 4 were in Beijing 149. While uterus
transplantation can be said to not directly relate to the illegal organ harvesting in China, a
Zhongshan hospital mentions that in 2009 they did the first successful kidney extraction using a
robot in China, right behind an article sub-section titled “Da Vinci and kidney transplantation”
150
.
Another Chinese hospital also indicates the use of Da Vinci for transplantation. They mention
that using this device, they were able to do almost 600 operations, and then in the next sentence
that all kidney transplantations were done with a minimally invasive surgical operation151.
Stock market & other information
Da Vinci robots have been distributed in China by Chindex152 since 2011153. Four years later, the
Chinese company Shanghai Fosun Pharmaceutical and Intuitive Surgical went in on a joint
venture for Da Vinci products and the related services. Fosun and Intuitive also plan cooperation
on medical device manufacturing, where Fosun should have 40% of the shares and Intuitive
60%154.
Intuitive Surgical has at least three types of Da Vinci systems. Their “Xi” system was approved
in China in 2018 and since their robots were already there, it signifies a plan to expand their
business operations in this country. They should be the leader when it comes to medical robots in
China, as in 2018 the Chinese national health committee published plans155 on its website to
import a lot of medical devices by the end of 2020, wherein a large number of device types are
set to have their number in China almost doubled. It relates to Intuitive Surgical as the plan for
surgical robots is 154 new units – the same amount the company plans to supply China with, as
mentioned above156.
Source: https://seekingalpha.com/news/3403394-intuitive-surgical-6-percent-potential-upside-
china
Intuitive Surgical is also a part of a joint venture with the Chinese company Fosun – called
Intuitive Surgical Fosun Medical Technology (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. Fosun is quite a successful
company, with its revenue going up from around 60 million USD in 2000 to 2.7 billion USD in
2018. It focuses on pharmaceuticals, healthcare, general medicine and diagnostics. Its revenues in
China are consistently around 85%.
Graph 3 Increasing revenue of Fosun Pharmaceuticals since 2000
By 2020, Intuitive Surgical should have so many medical robots in China that it should be within
their capacity to complete 100,000 medical operations per year, some of which should be organ
transplants, as evidence confirms their product finds its use in transplants as well. It has a joint
venture with a Chinese company Fosun.
Hologic, as a company, is focused on diagnostics and tools for procedures related to female
diseases. But it also has two connections to transplantation. The first one is its subsidiary
company Gen-Probe Transplant Diagnostics, Inc. 158, which provides diagnostic tool for
transplantation. But this lead is not confirmed as a certainty, as while Hologic has several
companies in China, and it is highly probable that one of them does diagnostics for
transplantation, it has not been proven.
The second connection is dual-energy X-ray bone densitometer, which measures the density of
bones after transplantation, as confirmed by one Chinese study which reveals its use after kidney
transplantation159. This device thus helps the patient to bear the consequences of a transplant
procedure, and indirectly supports the prosperity of the transplant business in China – and may be
used to measure the bone density of commercial transplant tourists that come from abroad.
Findings from Chinese sources
Dual-energy X-ray bone densitometer by Hologic is mentioned in a Chinese medical study where
the doctors use it to measure the bone density after kidney transplantation 160. It is a sometimes a
pressing topic, since as one Chinese hospital points out, one of the reasons for bone density loss
can really be transplantation161. Another Chinese hospital is of the same opinion, and confirms
the ownership of said product162.
Stock market & other information
The revenue of Hologic in the Asia-Pacific region mainly comes from China, Australia and
Japan163, which signifies the importance of China for this company. The Asia-Pacific region is a
part of their global revenue, and in 2016, 2017 and 2018 consisted of 8% of the total164, as is
revealed by the table from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission:
Source: https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/859737/000085973718000020/holx_q4-
2018.htm
Hologic has several companies in China. Its main area of revenue is diagnostics and one of the
subsidiary companies is focused on diagnostics for transplantation, which brings the possibility
of one of the Chinese ones doing the same. But the main connection lies in their product which
has a proven use for transplantation and is in China. Their revenue in China is growing.
Danaher owns the company Beckman Coulter, which manufactures a device with uses for stem
cell transplantation166. Another company under Danaher is HemoCue, whose product has a
proven use in liver transplantation167, for blood diagnostics after the transplant procedure and
helps to control anemia in some recipients afterwards as well. Chinese doctors put this device to
use for liver analysis during transplantation168 and other doctors from two Chinese hospitals also
used the FC500 MPL device in their medical study about kidney transplantation169.
Beckman Coulter also distributes immunosuppressive drugs from Thermo Fischer170, but we
were unable to confirm through research if the distribution takes part in China as well. Another
device used for transplantation for diagnostics during, or after it, is the Beckman AU5800. Both
of these devices are mentioned in a medical study written by Chinese doctors171.
Findings from Chinese sources
Searching through Chinese sources paradoxically helped us find the English medical studies
written by Chinese doctors mentioned above
Stock market & other information
A search through the information of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
revealed that in 2017 the increasing revenue of the company was significant in “Asia, especially
China” 172 and “Geographically, year-over-year core revenue growth in the analytical
instrumentation product line was driven by increased demand across all major geographies, led
by China” in 2016 and 2017173.
China is one of the six countries in the world where the company has a strong presence in174,
outside of the US. As the table below, featured in SEC, shows, the revenue in China makes up
more than 10% of the total revenue:
Table 5 Revenue of Danaher based on the country of origin
Source: https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/313616/000031361619000035/dhr-
20181231x10xk.htm
Increase in the demand for the clinical lab devices was in one year caused mainly by China175 and
it is also China who is mentioned as the main reason for demand for histology devices and
medical consumables176. The total income from China for Danaher is 2.37 billion USD in 2018,
or in other words 11.8% - with part of it from Hong Kong. The China revenue itself therefore
The total revenue in 2018 amount to 19.9 billion USD for the whole corporation, of which
diagnostics consist of 6.25 billion USD (31% total) and they actually started from zero in 2009.
The earliest data we could found about it are from 2014 where its revenue was 4.6 billion USD –
possibly due to the acquisition of a company. It concludes, then, that the revenue in China till
2014 must not have been from diagnostics. Life science also appears in its revenue by 2014.
Danaher, based on the SEC (U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission), has over 20 subsidiary
companies in China177. Lastly, a presentation for investors from 2013 reveals that Danaher plans
expansion in China178.
Source: https://seekingalpha.com/article/4228153-danaher-dhr-investor-presentation-slideshow
Relevance
Danaher has confirmed revenue in China, where it plans to solidify its business position. It has a
lot of subsidiary companies in China as well, and two of its companies manufacture products for
transplantation. Medical studies by Chinese doctors prove devices used for transplantation are
being used in China.
Abbott Laboratories is mentioned as a key player in the area of transplantation diagnostics179. The
main products of the company for success in this area are seemingly the Architect products. The
Architect i2000 is used by Chinese doctors in a medical study about the consequences of
transplantation180, mainly to measure the level of tacrolimus, an immunosuppressive drug used
for transplantation181. Architect i1000SR is used for immunoassay, a test done mainly after
transplantation, and is being used in China182.
Until 2013, Abbott also owned AbbVie, a company which had Gengraf183, an
immunosuppressive drug used for transplantation. In 2003, before splitting, a published medical
study by Hong Kong doctors shows the use of Gengraf on Chinese patients184.
Findings from Chinese sources
A Chinese medical study again confirms the use of the i2000 device for measuring the level of
tacrolimus in China185.
Stock market & other information
Abbott’s revenue in China is said to be around 3 billion USD per year186, but our evidence
suggests it is closer to 2 billion USD. A look into SEC records shows that Abbott has a research
and development facility in China, and among mentioned devices also sells the Alinity C and
Alinity I there187. The sales in 2017 were driven mainly by double digit growth in China187 and in
2017 and 2018, it was China who brought this company income of over 2 billion USD, 7% of the
yearly total188.
Source: https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1800/000104746919000624/a2237733z10-
k.htm
A search of SEC records proves that the global business with diagnostics has been affected over
the last 3 years by the continuing penetration of lab products in the US and China189.
Reported income from China for 2017 amounts to 2.15 billion USD, or 7.8% of the total. The
China income may have started in 2012, as that is the earliest year it was reported, at 859 million
USD (4.5% total). The pace of growth is significant, as it tripled over the last 5 years.
(in USD)
2015 1421 million
2016 1728 million
2017 2146 million
2018 Not reported
Source: compiled based on data available from Bloomberg
Graph 5 Growing revenue of Abbott Laboratories in China
Relevance
Abbott Laboratories is a key player in the area of diagnostics for transplantation. It sells at least
one of these products in China and has a growing presence with increasing revenue there.
Novartis is a manufacturer and developer of drugs and the biggest part of its revenue is brought in
by pharmaceuticals. In relation to transplantation, it has the immunosuppressive drugs
Sandimmun Neoral, Myfortic (Mycophenolic Acid) and Simulect190.
Findings from Chinese sources
Chinese doctors prove the use of the immunosuppressive drugs of Novartis in a lot of their
medical studies. Three Chinese doctors featured Myfortic in connection with kidney
transplantation191, as do six others192, or another one from Tianjin193, and two others mentioning
this drug under its different name – mycophenolic acid194. Finally the last medical study reveals
this drug as well, with over 20 doctors being the authors of it195.
Simulect is then written about by a doctor from Shanghai196 and a second study presents it in
relation to dozens of transplant cases197. Another one mentions it in relation to transplantation as
well198. Lastly, a fourth study has Simulect in China already in 1999199.
Neoral was in a study by two Chinese doctors about kidney transplantation200, with it also being
in another one written by six doctors201, and then as well from a third one published in 2002202.
Stock market & other information
Lutz Kaufmann in his book “China Champions“, from 2005, states that Neoral is one of the most-
sold drugs in China203.
The accurate revenue of Novartis in China is unknown, but it can be found that in 2018, 35% of
the revenue comes from the US. Some of it then consists of Japan, Canada, Great Britain,
Austria, Switzerland, Germany and France. The rest of the world outside of these countries
generate 44% of the revenue – including China.
Relevance
Long-term sales of immunosuppressive drugs in China which are directly used for
transplantation.
XVIVO is a company focused on medical technologies, and has been the “market standard for
lung preservation for more than 15 years204“, as is stated on their website. It was founded in 2012
and before that existed as a part of VitroLife. XVIVO provided China with the first devices to
prolong the ischemia time of kidneys, and since 1998 has sold Perfadex there, a solution for lung
preservation in transplantation205 – approved by the Chinese FDA (Food and Drug
Administration). The CEO of XVIVO describes China as the fastest growing market for lung
transplantation in the world and an important market for the company206.
Findings from Chinese sources
A Chinese study mentions Perfadex already in 1997207 and then two years later208. In 2004, the
XVIVO XPS system was approved in China, and has uses for lung transplantation as well209.
Stock market & other information
The revenue from 2016 and 2017 in Asia and Oceania amounted to over 1.6 million USD.
Income divided by region in 2016 and 2017 (in millions of Swiss francs)
2016 2017
American continent 86.8 87.9
EMEA without Sweden 42.4 49
Asia and Oceania 7.7 8.9
Sweden 1.3 2.5
Source: compiled based on data available from Bloomberg
Relevance
XVIVO has proven revenue in China and sells devices there for transplantation as well.
Bridge to Life, based on their official website, conducts business operations in China, and
supplies the country with their solution for organ preservation210, which is basically the only
product line of the company. A medical study of four Chinese doctors mentions it, under the
abbreviation UW (derived from “Belzer UW”) in 2008211. This solution was originally created at
the University of Wisconsin in the US, from whose foundation the company got the license and
developed the products Belzer UW and Belzer MPS using that212.
Stock market & other information
The product Belzer UW, used for the preservation of abdominal organs, is distributed in China by
two companies213 – Beijing Hui Xin Qing Yuan Pharmaceutical Science and Technology Co.
Ltd. and also Sichuan Wanji Imp Exp Trading Co., Ltd.
Relevance
The sales of organ preservation solutions in China, which has as close a use for transplantation as
possible.
Astellas is a Japanese company, earlier known under the name Fujisawa Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.
It was founded through the fusion of Fujisawa and Yamanouchi Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd in 2005.
For transplantation it has an immunosuppressive drug Tacrolimus – in other words Prograf.
Import of this drug to China was approved already in 1998214 for the Fujisawa company. Astellas
also doubled their China revenue in 2015 and came to the decision of hiring 300 new
salespersons215.
Findings from Chinese sources
Tacrolimus is mentioned by a Chinese medical study in 2009216 and by another one written by
seven Chinese doctors from 2008217. A third one from 2013 features the drug as well218.
Stock market & other information
Graph 6 Growing revenues of Astellas Pharma in Asia
The connection between transplantation in China and Astellas was pointed out to us by an
archive of a presentation by David Matas in 2012 in Singapore219, for which we are grateful.
Relevance
This company has a product called “Lambda Antigen Tray“, a device used for organ
compatibility match tests, which is also supported by a study from eight Chinese doctors220, and
another one by six doctors from Hangzhou221.
Stock market & other information
OrganOx
Oxford, United Kingdom
OrganOx, as is hinted upon by its name, is focused on products for organ preservation for
transplantation. A medical study by six Chinese doctors about kidney transplantation from 2019
provides us with evidence that the devices of this company are being used in China222.
The CEO of OrganOx revealed in March 2019 that the company has a presence in China223.
Stock market & other information
Paris, France
Relevance
The addition in the article of “At present, there are no enterprises in China that have obtained the
registration certificate for organ transplant perfusion instrument products, and mass production
cannot be achieved. Most enterprises and research institutions are still in the stage of technology
development and testing.
Therefore, the current market demand for organ transplant perfusion devices in China is
dependent on imported products“ is quite alarming. In the context of the date of the article, 2019,
it is important to notice that China has long been dependent on imported products, and any
unethical, or illegal transplantations in China just have to use the products available – the
products of western companies.
When it comes to the evidence of the companies’ profits and relevance for transplantation
business in China, we made effort to include only the highly important ones, and highlighted that
in the “relevance” section of their data.
But there are far more companies conducting a business in the field of transplantation, actually
also in China, and are considered to be the key players in that area. Yet, we were unable to prove
what kind of specific product or service they offer in this country.
In spite of that, since the evidence about the companies below makes it extremely likely they are
supporting the transplantation business in China, we decided to include a list of them as well, as
the prime examples of other companies where we had a certain lack of very specific evidence. To
be precise, these companies are thought to be the leaders in the area of transplant diagnostics228
on the global field by a report on transplant diagnostics focusing mainly on China, Europe, North
America and rest of the world. Any kind of simple online search then also confirms their
presence in China, and the conclusion for them is that key leaders of transplant diagnostics
conduct a business in China:
If we were to abandon the need for a specific evidence and had to create a list of companies based
on their existence of profits in China and products for transplantation in general, there would be
included more of them in this report.
There are at least tens of such companies, as China is, as many companies in this report
themselves point out, a highly profitable region when it comes to the transplant business. The
income, just by providing medications, could be staggering. One medical study230 mentions that
the cost of a kidney transplant procedure in China is overall 10.531 USD for the hospital, where
69.2% make up the medications and 2% miscellaneous medical services. Which means that for
every transplant procedure in China, the potential profit for western companies amounts to 71.2%
of the cost – not counting any of the medical devices and equipment used during that.
Some of the other companies we found also actually play, as far as we know, certainly a good
role, and we have therefore not included them in this report. For example Medtronic provides
China with “artificial hearts”, which reduce the need for a transplant, or in other words, reduce
the demand for any organs coming from the illegal organ harvesting in China.
Altogether, we present in this report 20 companies with very direct connection to transplantation
in China, and then another 8 where we were unable to find evidence of the specific product name
IRCC | THE ECONOMICS OF ORGAN HARVESTING IN CHINA | 53.
they offer. It should be also taken into account that, since the illegal organ harvesting is quite
unofficial, a lot of medical devices, medications and consumables may travel to China
unofficially – to smuggle in a medical device should be even easier than to invite a transplant
tourist, since the state itself would approve of it.
The evidence about illegal organ harvesting has been surfacing for more than 13 years231. From
phone recordings with the doctors232; witness testimonies233; discovering the truth about the
abnormal number of transplant centers, with over 700 of them234, 235, surpassing the official
number of 169236; the issue went further when the non-existence of a functional donor system in
China became known237; the testimonies about the 2-week-long waiting times238, 239; Chinese
doctors’ medical studies using unexplainable sources of organs240; and all of that on top of the
fact that 300,000 Chinese citizens per year are in need of an organ241.
All of means that China is heavily falsifying its transplant data as if to cover up for something,
and that something seems, by all evidence possible, to be a large, black market business built on
human rights abuses. The state already engages in large labor camps and the persecution of
human rights groups, which can provide a source for any illegal, hidden operations anywhere.
The Chinese communist party also has an absolute disrespect toward its citizens through a fake
transplant waiting list system – since it obviously gives more preference to rich transplant tourists
than its own citizens.
China, by all known information, imprisons more than 1.5 million people242, but just the number
of Uyghurs in the labor camps is around 1 million243. These persecuted groups are thus outside of
any analysis of the prison system, and the number of prisoners of conscience in China could
easily go up to hundreds of thousands244. The Communist Party of China already shuns these
people from the society, ruins their lives, and the only value it sees in them is working in the
labor camps, or singing the communist songs and being constantly re-educated. In short, it does
not see any value in them – making them ideal as a source of organs, since from the perspective
of the communist party, it would be using people of no value to preserve valuable people. Even
though the information about these groups became known at large in the 20th century, the fact
that China uses organs coming from executed prisoners – executed by the communist view on
justice - is old news.
At least 28 western companies supply China, in some cases for over 20 years, with the materials,
drugs and devices supporting the development of the transplantation business, and must be fully
aware of the facts and evidence mentioned above, and also that the crimes of China have been
recognized through resolutions by many countries worldwide. Directly, or indirectly, their global
business pulls their employees from their branches in Europe, America, or other parts in the
world into this awkward situation. It’s not like the murderous doctors in China have any other
choice than to use the imported western equipment – as China is not self-sufficient at all when it
comes to medical devices, and even in 2019 is dependent on the import of devices for organ
preservation245.
The western companies in the area of medical business therefore support transplantation in a
country where patients from at least 20 countries and regions in the world travel for an organ
which was supplied to them outside of the waiting list for Chinese citizens, has a dubious source,
and somebody might have been killed for it.
The current global policies enable western companies to conduct business in China where their
products could very easily be used in crimes against humanity, as in many cases they are, or were
at some point in time the only available of their kind. These companies, including their
employees globally, are without any institution checking for their vulnerability in cases like this
FAQ
Information reported by doctors, researchers, investigative journalists, and the Transplant
Society246 proves, that China has used executed prisoners as the source of organs for over 40
years. These prisoners are judged and convicted based on the communist principles of justice.
From the view of the democratic legal system, which we have in the West, we would perhaps
convict the sometimes-biased judges instead of the prisoners. In other words, from the
perspective of our legal system, just using executed prisoners at large like this would be illegal in
a democracy and possibly constitute a crime against humanity.
For over 13 years, there also keeps surfacing evidence that the transplant procedures in China are
illegally done on the groups of persecuted groups, due to their ethnic or religious status. There are
no doubts about the fact that the transplantation in China not only does not abide by medical
ethics, but also suffers from a lack of professionalism. The results of the research among medical
studies show that there are brokers and other entities facilitating transplant operations in China.
The western patients are contacted by a third-party soon after they are on the waiting list, and the
results the recipients get after getting an organ transplant are not of a quality comparable to the
western countries. The situation is unacceptable both from the medical and human rights point of
view.
Our research into western companies reveals that 20 companies, and with relaxed criteria 28 of
them, are not only supporting such transplant business in China, but also have enabled it to get to
a massive scale.
Do western companies in some way take part in this crime against humanity?
The above-mentioned facts ascertain that they do, indeed.
If they take part in it, are they responsible for these crimes?
Yes, they are.
If that is so, should the offices in the countries of residence conduct an official investigation?
Yes, as it is necessary to impartially investigate this through the official channels and to stop
involuntary organ harvesting. The companies can react on their own and remain ethical, or the
offices may force them.
If the western pharmaceutical and medical companies make an ethical stand and cease to
support these crimes in any way possible, would that influence their economic results?
Yes, inevitably. Their market results will be influenced, at first negatively, as they cut down on
part of their revenue, but in a long-term positively, as they will have more revenue in the
democratic countries thanks to their behavior. We suppose that the shareholders in the democratic
countries would accept this.
Do the doctors, in the country of origin of the transplant tourists, know about the illegal
organ harvesting?
The seeming global passivity of professional institutions – in comparison with the severity of the
issue – and the restraint of the doctors, makes hard to confirm the extent of information they are
aware of. But our research results suggest they know more than what is known, and since some
of the evidence was published in the medical journals the issue is not new to any of them.
Is it possible that they silently accept what is going on by not acting against it?
As it’s hard to assume something like this without directly asking them, this would require the
investigation of the following question – do the doctors prefer prolonging the life of their patient
at the cost of a possible murder abroad?
Should doctors engaged in the process of transplant tourism be held criminally responsible?
That is a question which should be answered by the authorities in their relevant countries.
Should the authorities focus on the issue of brokers and agencies in the field of transplant
tourism?
Absolutely, as the evidence gathered through medical studies points toward the existence of a
systematical international business in the field of transplant tourism – which however uses organs
even from China, and so the authorities’ investigation could help to stop or restrain the large-
scale crime of illegal organ harvesting.
Should the authorities conduct research to know how much the doctors know about the
illegal organ harvesting in China?
Yes, as the evidence confirms that doctors in democratic countries should be aware of significant
information, but it is probably not being put together systematically.
Should the authorities also investigate how many transplant tourists there are in their
country which did seek an organ in China, or another non-democratic country?
Yes, the scope of these crimes and therefore the impact it has on democratic countries should be
known.
Will the investigation of these crimes have future consequences on the geopolitical situation
in the world?
It will, as the non-democratic regimes will realize that democratic countries are capable of
defending basic human rights, the right to live and religious freedom all over the world, and that
these values and the countries defending them are strong.
If the democratic countries won’t bow before the possibility of economic gains at the cost of
supporting the narrative of non-democratic countries, then a similar message will come across to
their citizens as well.
The questions relevant to illegal organ harvesting are not dependent on the answers from the
regime or criminal group in China. A lot of these questions can be answered by the third parties
partaking in transplant tourism, the doctors, the companies and others. In other words, it’s a
crime which can be fully investigated, and therefore stopped, and no research or investigation
would be done in vain.
The evidence in this report reveals that the illegal organ harvesting in China is not a criminal
offense limited to just that one country, but inevitably depends on many factors outside of China.
This makes it all the more pressing for the relevant authorities to look into it, such as medical,
human rights and foreign policy associations, business organizations, chambers of commerce and
others. There are many questions these organizations can ask and would easily be able to find
answers, some of which we have tried to present in this report.
No country or any other entity should abandon their bottom line and support illegal organ
harvesting in any way or not investigate their possible part in it. This crime enables China to
support a crime against humanity, conduct genocide, and lower itself to the level of primitive,
barbarian societies. The criminals in China became financially dependent on the organ harvesting
abuses, and the regime, if it’s not the main source of the issues itself, could have actually became
dependent on it as well.
This crime is not the medical solution the democratic countries require, it is the only solution that
the socialist and communist criminals in China were able to come up with for us. That is to say, it
can be done in a better way, as communist groups have a very bad historic record when it comes
to win-win long-term solutions for the betterment of people.
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All of the sources of evidence below were archived and are available upon request.
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Translation done by
Daniel Monaghan
First edition
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