It is a sad fact that unethical surgeons - hopefully few, and rare - may remove livers during surgery so that they can sell them for high prices to people desperate for a transplant. Usually rogue intermediaries are necessary as the safe storage of the organ is vital before any transplant can be carried out.
There are anxieties about thefts of livers in countries where law and order is not well maintained. Even in Egypt, a recent case occurred where the body of a British tourist who died suddenly on holiday there was returned home without some organs.
