KYOTO -- It is often the case in Japan that the decisions of the family are more respected than those of the individual when considering someone's personal affairs.

But bioethics expert Kazumasa Hoshino said that until this changes, especially in the field of medicine, bioethics and the practice of informed consent -- as seen in the U.S. and Europe -- will never be fully established in Japan.

As a typical example, Hoshino, a professor emeritus at Kyoto University, cited a clause in the Organ Transplant Law introduced in 1997 that stipulates that one's wish to be an organ donor after brain death can be fulfilled only if the family does not object.