I investigated the possibility of donating my body to medical science recently by calling a hospital in Washington, DC, where I was living at the time, only to discover that my HIV status disqualified me from doing this.
I'm not even thinking about donating organs to people who might need them, but I really thought that I had the right to donate my body for medical research.
I understand that HIV-tainted blood may put potential students and researchers at risk, but I really wish there were a way that well-meaning individuals who are HIV+ would have the opportunity to donate their remains in order to help the future of medical research and training.
Derek Virginia
Comment from the POZ Staff: A number of HIV researchers would be happy to accept all of you—or part of you—when you die. Groups like the AIDS Cancer Specimen Resource and the National NeuroAIDS Tissue Consortium are always looking for organs and tissues from the dead to help advance the study of HIV disease for those still living.
