EP08 - Blood Testing for Metal Allergies with MELISA® Diagnostics Part 1

MELISA® Diagnostics is one of the worldwide leaders in Blood LTT or Lymphocyte Transformation Testing for metal allergies.

In Part One of this special 2 part episode, Linda Nelson, CEO for MELISA, shares how the MELISA test was developed, patented and clinically validated. First, Linda shares about her favorite heavy metal band, Metallica, and song, “Nothing Else Matters”. Shari reminisces about first meeting Metallica “back in the day”, before anyone knew who they were. Shari promises to post a photo in the show notes link.

Linda Nelson is the daughter of Vera Stejskal, the developer of the test. Vera was an immunologist, specializing in immunotoxicology and worked for Astra Pharmaceuticals, also known as AstraZeneca, and initially developed the MELISA LTT test to screen workers, measuring the immune system’s reaction to workplace substances.

It wasn’t long before Vera’s colleague, dermatologist Margaret Forsburg, proposed using the test to detect metal reactivity in patients who believed they were being poisoned by their amalgam fillings. Vera was granted the right to patent the test and dedicated her life to raising awareness about metal’s effects on human health and developing scientific tools to measure metal reactivity.

The test became clinically validated after an independent lab in Germany conducted a 2003 study using 250 patients and various lymphocyte concentrations. In 2006 a follow-up study treated patients based on the MELISA test results and observed improvements in health. The clinically relevant test involves confirming metal reactivity through the test, removing metals indicated by the test and further monitoring the patient’s health symptoms.

A second study at Charles University in Prague selected 42 patients. 32 patients made lifestyle changes following MELISA testing. 94% reported significant health improvements, Linda assumes by mainly removing dental metals.

When asked how useful the MELISA test would be for patients prior to an implantation surgery, and it was reiterated that testing only grabs a snapshot of what is happening in the body at the moment. It cannot predict the future sensitivities, as immune activity can start a week, month or years after exposure and Linda pointed out the immune system is not static.

Linda was asked if lab technicians noticed the delayed-reactivity of the cells during the testing period and Linda responded in the affirmative, stating that is why they have to wait at least five days before reading the test results.

Linda and Shari discussed Shari and her husband’s MELISA test results, and both the Stimulation Index and the Morphology methodologies were explained. Basically the morphology confirms or discards the allergy, when the cells are observed under a microscope. This is one of the techniques that sets the MELISA tests apart from other LTT methodologies.

Linda shares a few remarkable patient stories and in conclusion discuss the importance of studying metal hypersensitivity and the need for hard evidence to support the removal of metals from the body. They highlight that lack of reactivity in the MELISA test does not necessarily indicate that metals are beneficial or not causing issues.

They also discuss the need for proper studies and research to understand the effects of metals on the body. They discuss the MELISA labs in Germany, Switzerland and Israel and Linda shares about future plans to extend into North America to satisfy an ever-increasing demand for testing.

In Part Two, which will be out in several weeks, a full video how-to walkthrough will show the Metalhead community how to screen for and order the MELISA test, how to facilitate the blood draw, prepare the paperwork & sample for shipping, and will walk through receipt and interpretation of the results.

In this episode, you will learn:

• How the MELISA test was developed.
• How the MELISA test was clinically validated
• The delayed reactivity nature of a Type-IV metal allergy.
• The options and pros/cons for testing pre and post surgery.

~Links and Resources~

~To see images that accompany this episode click: https://tinyurl.com/mr3mrpkz

~ To learn more visit https://heavilymetalled.com

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~ Check out our sponsor MELISA.org

***Many WONDERFUL, supportive special-interest communities exist for metal allergies and diet, hardware issues, medical devices, etc., online and on social media. They have many resources and often act as a collective think-tank. I owe many parts of my recovery to knowledge obtained in such groups. Search keywords to join these groups and find your tribe!***