Nicholas Crace, the 83-year old man who is fit and healthy, shows the world how a living human being can rise above the life-and-death concept and serve the humanity with whatever possible means he has. The UK-based man has recently donated one of his kidneys to a person he did not even know and perhaps would never know. He has donated blood 57 times and is a volunteer driver for a local hospice.

“I knew that 7,000 people are waiting for a kidney and that one person dies almost every day while waiting.  ….Giving a small part of me to someone else will make little difference to my life but a huge difference to someone else's. I was lucky to be in a position to help someone else less fortunate than myself," the man was quoted as saying to theguardian in UK.

Crace was aware of the difficulties faced by patients on dialysis – regular trips to hospital, a restricted diet and health problems. He said it was an easy decision to become a donor.

Over a period of six months, he made 14 visits to Queen Alexandra hospital in Portsmouth – a round trip of nearly 100 miles – for tests, checks and a three-hour operation to remove a kidney. Within three days of the operation he was back mowing the lawn and riding his bike, theguardian reported.

Sam Dutta, the surgeon who performed the operation, said, "We know from numerous studies that a living-donor kidney performs better, works quicker and lasts longer than one from a deceased donor. All the detrimental factors related to being on dialysis are completely taken care of by a good functioning kidney. An altruistic donor coming forward is an amazing thing for us. The recipient just gets a new lease of life."

Crace is one of a rare breed – just 100 people in the UK have donated a kidney while living, for someone they are never likely to know.

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