Kidney Thieves Steal Nip/Tuck's Credibility

Ryan Murphy, the creator and head writer of Nip/Tuck, is oft quoted for claiming: "Our medical cases are 100-percent based on fact." The beloved episode "Momma Boone," about a morbidly obese woman who's become fused to her couch, is apparently based on the real story of a 480-pound Florida woman who died after emergency workers tried to separate her from the couch on which she'd been living for six years. Mrs. Grubman's plastic surgery addiction is an actual symptom of body dysmorphic disorder. And Hannah Tedesco's face transplant? The French did it.

No matter how ridiculous these medical stories seemed, they always hovered in the realm of possibility. So it's a wonder why the writers of Nip/Tuck are mining Internet urban legends for this season's stupid storyline about kidney thieves.

You know how the legend goes: A business man meets a beautiful woman in a bar while traveling. She suggests they go back to her hotel room, she drugs him, and the next morning he wakes up with a nasty hangover and an incision in his side. They've stolen his kidney. On the show, the kidney thieves are part of a highly sophisticated and well-funded crime ring commanded by Jacqueline Bisset.

Is there any truth to this storyline? Nope, nada. Snopes says this urban legend is false. It's a myth perpetuated by heavily forwarded emails warning travelers to beware.

We also wanted to get a medical perspective, so we checked with the National Kidney Foundation. From their website:

The foundation has received calls from concerned business travelers who have been warned by their travel agents to beware of the 'crime ring' when traveling. "It's an urban myth run amok," says Fred Herbert, chairman of the National Kidney Foundation. "There is no evidence that such activity has ever occurred in the United States," says Mr. Herbert.

It's a shame such a provocative show as Nip/Tuck has now turned to urban legends. Fans who stuck through the Carver storyline and Christian's sexual abuse are finally starting to see Fonzie strap on his skis.

UPDATE: We contacted the National Kidney Foundation to get the latest word on kidney thieves. It remains an urban legend. Jennifer Martin, Donor Service Program Director, told us there's "no case of anything like that actually happening." In fact, it's not even feasible. Jennifer said a potential donor has to undergo "a whole series of tests to determine if someone is a match. A blood test is the first one." On Nip/Tuck, the kidney thieves appear to be picking victims at random.

Jennifer said they understand that a television program is for entertainment. However, she said, "Even though people know it is a fictional show, they still believe certain elements of the show. It leads people to distrust the [donor] system. We hear from people who still believe things like this."