A critical study of the adequacy of Human Tissues Act 1974 in protecting donors of organ and tissue donation and transplantation in Malaysia / Nadzriah Ahmad

In Malaysia, organ and tissue donation is governed by the provisions of the Human Tissues Act 1974. The current state of law reveals that the present Human Tissues Act 1974 Act lacks many fundamental provisions and there are many lacunas which contribute to the unsatisfactory state of the present law. The provisions in above Act governs organ and tissue transplantation of cadaveric donors only and does not govern the position of living donors and there is currently no legislation in Malaysia governing living donors (i.e. related or unrelated donors). This paper aims at exploring the adequacy of the present 1974 Act in protecting cadaveric donors and whether there is a need to amend the 1974 Act in order to strengthen its effectiveness in governing laws surrounding organ and tissue donation and transplantation. Research shows that there is a compelling need to amend the present laws governing organ and tissue donation and transplantation to make it more effective.