At the crossroads of anthropology and organ transplants: tendencies, concepts and agendas

This text is an overview of the debates around the technology of human organ transplantation from the perspective of the social sciences. The article is divided into four sections: on the one hand, it presents some of the main currents regarding the ethics of human organ transplantation. Secondly, it dwells into the professional encounter and the anthropology of the medical practice. Thirdly, the paper discuses the main problems with transplantation as it relates to the trafficking of human organs. Finally, it hints at the possible research agendas relevant in Latin America, and particularly in Colombia.