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Serum iron level measures the level of iron in
the liquid part of your blood.
It also measures the amount of
Transferrin, a blood protein that transports iron
from the gut to the cells that use it. Your body makes Transferrin in
relationship to your need for iron.
When iron stores are low, Transferrin
levels increase, while Transferrin is low when there is too much iron.
Usually about one third of the Transferrin is being used to transport iron.
Because of this, your blood serum has considerable extra iron-binding
capacity, which is the Unsaturated Iron Biding Capacity (UIBC). The TIBC
equals UIBC plus the serum iron measurement. Some laboratories measure UIBC,
some measure TIBC, and some measure transferrin
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