Would you sell a body part to get an iPad 2?

Apple have a very strong following, and it would be fair to say that a portion of their audience are fanatical. A story emerged late this week that a 17 year old boy by the name of Zheng confessed to his mother than he had sold his kidney so he could afford a new iPad 2.

He saw the advertisement online, offering cash to people who would be prepared to sell organs.

“I wanted to buy an iPad 2, but I didn't have the money,” the kid told Shenzhen TV “When I surfed the internet I found an advert posted online by agent saying they were able to pay RMB20,000 to buy a kidney.”

After talking to the people involved he travelled north to Chenzhou in Hunan Province where he had his kidney removed at a local hospital. He was paid RMB22,000 for the kidney and then discharged three days later.

Trading organs might not be a common practice in the UK, but in China it is more common. The Chinese government are trying to stop it, but it isn't proving successful. Last year Japanese TV reported that a group of ‘transplant tourists' had handed over £50,000 so they could get a new kidney in China.

The black market thrives in China because statistics show a million people each year need a transplant, but only 10,000 of them receive a new organ.

Zheng, sadly has suffered complications after he had his kidney removed and it was impossible for him to keep the operation a secret. He has not yet said if he thinks the iPad2 is worth it or not.

Kitguru says: Would you have a kidney removed for an iPad 2?

Become a Patron!