Kidney for iPad ruined my life
MAN LEFT WITH ORGAN FAILURE
A TECH-loving man who sold his kidney as a teenager to buy a new iPhone and iPad is now bedridden for life as a result.
Wang Shangkun has since suffered kidney failure in his remaining organ.
The 25-year-old was 17 when his desire for Apple’s flagship devices led him to give his right kidney to black market organ harvesters in April 2011.
The teenager from Anhui Province in east China received £2,520 and purchased an iPhone 4 and
iPad 2 with the funds.
Dialysis
Reports even quoted him as having said at the time: “Why do I need a second kidney? One is enough.” Media in Wang’s native China recently revealed he now spends his days in bed and relies on dialysis to survive his kidney failure. The 6ft 2in man developed renal deficiency not long after the illegal surgery.
It is believed to have led to an infection owing to the unsanitary setting in which it took place and the apparent lack of postoperative care.
He was also forced to give up his studies and now depends on social benefits.
Nine people were arrested in connection with the case and five, including the surgeons who harvested his kidney, were jailed in 2012.
His family was eventually awarded £168,000 in compensation later the same year.
Reports at the time revealed that Wang desperately sought the new iPhone in order to show off to his friends.
His family, however, who live in one of China’s poorest provinces, could not afford the device, so he turned to other means to raise the money to make the purchase.
The operation took place in the city of Chenzhou in China’s Hunan Province. It was carried out by two doctors who were also employed at local hospitals.