We need to act fast for Abdou, aged three and a half: his condition is deteriorating and he needs a liver transplant to survive. But the number of paediatric organ donations has been falling for several years. "It's obviously very difficult to consider donation at such a critical time, because you can't ask someone to make their loved one's death a reality and at the same time take responsibility for that decision," admits Charlotte Roy, a lung specialist at the Necker children's hospital, urging that the issue be discussed "early on". IMAGES AND SOUNDBITES