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.
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. 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.
When asked how useful the MELISA test would be for patients prior to an implantation
surgery, 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.
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.
Both the Stimulation Index and the Morphology methodologies were explained. 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 discusses the importance of studying metal hypersensitivity and the need for hard evidence to support the
removal of metals from the body. 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 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~
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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!***