Yellowknife (July 04/01) - Do Yellowknifers think transplanting live animal organs, tissues and cells into people is an acceptable way to compensate for Canada's shortage of human organ donors?

The Canadian Public Health Association is holding a public forum this Thursday at the Explorer Hotel to ask the community where it stands on this heated debate. Yellowknife's forum will be the last of six discussions commissioned by Health Canada in major cities across the country. After this final session, a public advisory group will review public opinion and make recommendations to Health Minister Allan Rock.

The forum will include presentations from expert panelists, questions from citizens and an open public debate. The panel of citizens -- consisting of area residents and representatives of aboriginal organizations -- must then report to the advisory group.

"We are asking them if we should proceed with this and, if so, under what circumstances," said Sylvia Fanjoy, project director of the Canadian Public Health Association. "They have to reach a conclusion, but not a consensus."

Fanjoy declined to comment on the results of the five previous forums.

"We haven't announced the results yet," she said. "But each city has been different."

On the citizen panel is Nancy Anderson. "Hopefully, I'll be able to come down on one side or the other," she said. "It seems like a bad idea, but when you put yourself in different shoes, it's hard to say what's right and wrong."

To date, all attempts at xenotransplantation have failed. But this is changing with medical and technological advances. For instance, scientists can now genetically alter animal organs to make them more compatible with the human body.

At present, there are 3,500 Canadians on the waiting list for human donor organs.