MARQUETTE -- More than 10,000 people nationwide are in need of a bone marrow transplant. Seventy percent of those people don't match anyone in their family so they depend on finding a match.

New technologies make donating bone marrow easier for people. If you are between the ages of 18 and 44, you can join the national bone marrow program. You will have to give a swab of your saliva, which gets tested to see if your genetics match with someone in need.

Steve Gualdoni, a Physician Assistant, says the most common way of donating marrow is through a process called Peripheral Blood Stem Cell donation.

"Blood is taken out of your body to a special ferisis machine. Blood components are separated, the stem cells which can be given in a special receptacle bag. The rest of your blood goes back into your body," said Gualdoni.

The process takes six hours. All expenses are paid for by the program.

You may experience some side-effects like headaches, bone or muscle soreness.

Cecilia Brown writes:  "A few years ago I donated stem cells as an alternative to bone marrow, for a compete stranger. I've done much scarier things in my life and would do it again in a heartbeat."

Once you have donated, the person in need then gets the transplant.

"We can take somebody else's immune system as part of their bone marrow and give this individual a new lease on life. These people do very, very well," Gualdoni said.

You remain on the registry until you turn sixty one. If at any time you wish to be removed from the list, you can do so.

It's a great way for you to save someone's life. So if you want donate, it's just click here.