Don du corps à la science

Abstract

In France, between 2,500 and 3,000 people donate their bodies to science each year after their death; they contribute therefore to the teaching of anatomy, to research and to the learning and improvement of surgical practices. The decision to donate must be made during the donor's lifetime and consent must be expressed in writing to one of the 27 donation centers throughout the country. Following the scandal of the Parisian center of the Saints Pères, which revealed a lack of respect for bodies and fundamental ethical principles, the decree of April 27, 2022 concerning the donation of bodies for teaching and research purposes, which is part of the new bioethic laws, was eagerly awaited to clarify certain practices. However, this decree raises new questions because many of the rules it proposes do not appear to be relevant to the values of donation and the functioning of donation centers. The new modes of regulation proposed by the decree generate questions among donors and professionals in the field with a risk of poor regulation, detrimental to all with regard to major ethical issues. If the public authorities do not commit themselves to a regulation that is better adapted to the field, if the ethical stakes are not better clarified and if the universities do not have the means to implement these new organizations, the perpetuation of body donation and of donation centers could become challenging.