Specimen Type/Volume

0.5 mL serum or lithium-heparin plasma.

Shipping Information

Ship in insulated container with freezer packs.

Collection Protocol

Collect blood into a red-top vacutainer; avoid hemolysis. Separate serum from cells as soon as possible following collection and transfer to a leakproof tube. Refrigerate until shipped.

Additional Information

Nearly all iron in non-hemolyzed serum is bound to transferrin, therefore serum iron concentration represents the amount of transferrin-bound iron.