Your Organ Is Mine: Rethinking Ownership Issues in 3D Bioprinting

This article discusses ownership and property issues in three-dimensional (3D) bioprinting from the perspective of the tangible aspect of the technology. Many scholars have examined property issues in the intangible aspect of the technology, namely, the intellectual property issue. Since a major component of 3D bioprinting is cells taken from patients and donors, it is important to explore the right of ownership over the physical product, including cells used in the 3D bioprinting process and the 3D bioprinted organ itself. What is the extent of the donor's right over his/her cells taken for use in 3D bioprinting and even the 3D bioprinted organ - the product of those cells? For example, can the cell donor determine how his/her cells are used, or even who gets the 3D bioprinted organ? What rights does a person have over the commercial use of his/her cells or tissue for 3D bioprinting?