This article stood out to me because it reminded me of a time when I was a caregiver for a lady with Alzheimer's disease and we were watching a commercial about dementia. She ingenuously quipped at the commercial with, "I'm sure glad that I don't have dementia!" Finding her answer charming, I asked, "What would you do if you did get it?"

Her answer: "I would donate all my organs and die peacefully, not knowing that I was going, anyway." 

Will senior donors help solve the problem of organ shortage?  It might seem so considering the lower fertility rates we've been experiencing.

Modest studies reveal contradicting results of recipients that accept organs from seniors. In some cases, age of kidney does seem to correlate to shorter life expectancy (74.5% chance of living after five years with a kidney from a senior as opposed to 96% chance of living after five years with a kidney from a young donor). In other studies, no difference in results appeared. Not enough time has lapsed to conclude the effectiveness of old age organ donors with a longitudinal study, nor has enough been documented of the negative effects of donating at a much later age.

For more on this article about Older People Donating Organs.