If you are a binge drinker or a habitual partier, take notice. Your liver hates you. Do you know that feeling you get in your stomach when you have been out drinking too much? That’s your liver down there, and he’s giving you a reminder of just how bad you’ve ruined his life. Eventually, your liver is going to stop hanging out down there with the kidneys and say, “Peace out.” When your liver runs out on your after a few years of heavy drinking (and he will), where do you turn?

Hopeless to get a liver through the official channels
It’s not like you’ll be able to head down to Wal-Mart and pick up a new liver. That store might have them in a few years, but you won’t find one now. Where do you have to look to find a new liver? That depends how much you are willing to spend and the risks that you are willing to take. Obviously, the conventional approach will tell you to see a doctor and try to get lucky with a transfer. Those lines are long and it’s difficult to get a liver when you need one, though. You might have to try some different means.

The black market
There’s this thing called the black market and many folks don’t know how it works. It’s an underground ring of organ dealers who specialize in getting organs to you quickly. Buying a liver on the black market is expensive and it carries tremendous risk. Expect to pay thousands of dollars, depending upon the market demand for livers where you live. In some cases, it can be even more than that.

Risks
The risks associated with these types of purchases are substantial. It isn’t exactly legal to deal human organs off of the street, so you could run into problems with the legal system. In addition, there are the huge health risks. Who knows if the liver that you purchase is completely compatible with your body? What might that liver have been put through? These questions are hard to answer, making this an enormous risk.

If your liver has hit the road and you need a new one, be prepared to pay a ton of money and assume a lot of risk. If it’s really something you need, you’ll have to have a lot of luck in order to get through a liver transplant unscaved.