Head transplants raise legal and ethical questions

Sergio Canavero, an Italian doctor well-known for advocating head transplants, recently told the media that the first head transplant will be done in China by the end of 2017.

He said, the Chinese medical team is familiar with the relevant techniques and the first patient to undergo such an operation will be Chinese.

We are not sure whether the surgery is as mature as he suggests and whether a head transplant would succeed. But before such a transplant is attempted there are legal and ethical questions to be considered.