Allocating organs through algorithms and equitable access to transplantation—a European human rights law approach

Abstract

Digitization in transplantation is not a new phenomenon. Algorithms are being used, for example, to allocate organs based on medical compatibility and priority criteria. However, digitization is accelerating as computer scientists and physicians increasingly develop and use machine learning (ML) models to obtain better predictions on the chances of a successful transplant. The objective of the article is to shed light on the potential threats to equitable access to organs allocated through algorithms, whether these are the consequence of political choices made upstream of digitization or of the algorithmic design, or are produced by self-learning algorithms. The article shows that achieving equitable access requires an overall vision of the algorithmic development process and that European legal norms only partially contribute to preventing harm and addressing equality in access to organs.