Debbie Heist Lambert | The Hidden Danger in MRI Contrast Dye: Gadolinium Toxicity, Symptoms & Detox
41m 43s
In this episode, Dr. Karl Fult interviews Debbie Heisslembert, who shares her eight-year journey with gadolinium toxicity after receiving four MRI contrast injections for pancreatitis. She describes how the toxic metal, which is wrapped in a ligand intended to keep it safe, can disassociate and accumulate throughout the body, competing with calcium and causing systemic damage. Her symptoms included memory loss, electrocution-like sensations, severe bone pain, and multiple diagnoses like small fiber neuropathy and mast cell activation syndrome. She emphasizes that gadolinium does not serve any biological purpose and can remain in the body for years, as evidenced by her own high levels in blood, hair, urine, and fingernails. Heisslembert highlights the lack of awareness among doctors, who often dismiss symptoms as anxiety, and notes the financial conflicts that discourage research into this issue. She advises patients to undergo full metal panels, work with holistic practitioners, and avoid self-detoxification, as the process can be dangerous and complex. The discussion also touches on how cancer and MS patients, who undergo frequent imaging, may be unknowingly affected, with many realizing their symptoms are linked to gadolinium retention rather than their primary disease. The episode underscores the need for greater toxicology expertise and patient advocacy.
This program explores integrative approaches intended to support, not replace conventional medical care. The information presented is for educational purposes only, and it's not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. Always consult your physician or qualified healthcare provider regarding any medical condition or treatment decisions. Welcome to integrative cancer solutions with Dr. Karl Fult. A cancer diagnosis can feel overwhelming. You're suddenly faced with urgent decisions, complex information, and a path that may not feel fully clear. This show is here to help you navigate that journey with knowledge, perspective, and confidence. Each episode brings you real stories, expert insights, and integrative approaches designed to support your body alongside conventional treatment, expanding your options and strengthening your foundation for healing. And now let's begin. Debbie Heisslembert, it's such a pleasure and such an honor to have you on this show. We're going to talk about something that a lot of people aren't aware of, but people that are on a cancer journey, they're exposed to quite a bit. And that is Catalonian. So thank you so much for coming on this show and so we can talk a little bit deeper about that. Yeah, and so how did your journey start with this? I was diagnosed with, I was hospitalized for pancreatitis and so they wanted to see the pancreas and so being in the hospital, the thing was I had four injections over two year period. The first one was for pancreatitis and then I got dementia like symptoms and so they were testing me for Alzheimer's because they couldn't figure out what happened to my memory. Then the third and fourth one were for follow ups for pancreatitis over the next two years. And how did that impact you? Yeah, what what happened? Well, I actually was 56 years old and so I was too young to retire, but I found myself retired immediately because I couldn't find my way to my job or to the dog park or to the grocery store. I would go to meetings at work, I would be working on files and I would go to my next meeting. I couldn't remember where I saved the files on my computer. I would break out into felt like elect, like I was being electrocuted and I would turn really pale green and people would be worried about me. I thought I was having a heart attack a couple times. So I just got worse and worse and so yeah, I gave up my career. Yeah, and then I've written a book. I wrote a book with 24 other patients. And it's been an eight year journey and I still have high levels of gadolidium in my blood serum in my hair in my urine and in my fingernails. And I'm participating in the study out at the University of New Mexico, health science department with Dr. Brent Wagner. I'm at the largest repository that we know of, cracking toxicants and how they're impacting humans and especially gadolidium. So I encourage people to follow him, he publishes a lot on X publishes a lot of research out there so people can you know get to know about it to learn about it, but it is a toxic rareth metal. And everyone it's found in your brain, your bones, your tissue and your organs. It does accumulate. So people who maybe don't have a reaction the first time doesn't mean that they won't have a reaction as the toxicity. Yeah, evolves and builds in the body. And just to kind of you, how about your book, you know, for the audience I listen, so it's called a gadolinium deposition and toxicity. Yeah, yeah. And so you what kind of work did you do, you know, before the MRI? What I spent my the last 20 years of my career, I'd say in translations. So I would translate content from English up into 75 different languages. I just managed people and processes, but we translated technical marketing, all kinds of content for a couple different major companies into like 75 languages. So yeah, so see you would kind of refer yourself as a, you know, a very highly functioning individual that yeah, oh yeah. And most people I meet are and that's the sad thing about this this agent. I wouldn't even call it a drug. It's a change agent and it changes you. And the highest percentage of our group are the age from 18 to 44, 27% of our group. And that's an age group where you would expect people to be out getting married, buying their first house, you know, and they're not, they're couch surfing, they have food instability, housing instability, you have no insurance, no jobs, it can't work. A lot of times it's the burning bone pain that just is so prohibitive and then you don't sleep. So sleep becomes a problem. There's just so many symptoms related to this. It's a systemic. I want people to really understand it's a systemic bodily issue. It impacts all of the organs and all of the functions within the different bodily systems. And when you say systemic, I mean, what, I mean, how, how does it, how does it go? So, because from our understanding, you know, when, when a cancer doctor oncologist or whoever it is, they want to do an image. And this can be for obviously any disease, but, you know, for, for cancer patients and you do frequent imaging. So what does it actually do? I mean, you see, I have the gadolinium and they say that no problem, you, you pee it out and, you know, so what actually happens when you infuse gadolinium as an agent. And then there's wrapped in a ligand and the ligand's intended to keep it safe. And there's, there's eight to 10 brands out because they're introducing new brands all the time. And now they've the new brands, they will say, well, these are safe. Because we use less gadolinium, but as one, MR safety officer has said for years, gadolinium is gadolinium is gadolinium. So all these agents that they're making, even though they have less gadolinium in them and they are wrapped in a ligand intended to keep them safe. But we know the ligand situation is flawed. We, that's where the science is still proving what is happening is it getting outside of the ligand is the ligand deteriorating those, you know, it's got an impacts, it has an impact with oxalates, which we all eat oxalates. And so it's changing somehow once it's injected inside the body. So they inject it with an IV, they take the pictures, the magnet pounds away, you're in the, you're in the machine and the magnets pounding away, it's drawing that contrast to the place in the body that they want to take the picture. It kind of glows in the dark so they can see everything really, really well and it does create a great image. So it reduces the time for the radiologists to do diagnostics, it reduces their time and it hones in really specific where there might be an ailment. Unfortunately, a lot of people in our group and we have just, we're just passing the 15,000 mark and when I joined the group, there was 1200 and so many times we hear people get in the MRI machine, get injected and then nothing's wrong, they don't fight anything. And that, and then they have got a lithium poisoning and then they're fighting that and that's a repeat customer thing, right. Probably the top two or three things that people are diagnosed with right out of the box when you find yourself with gadolidium and you're struggling is small fiber neuropathy, which is just a quick punch test on your ankle and foot two quick punches and they can detect the gadolidium in there and the small fiber nerves as you know, Dr. Carlton is, are the most sensitive nerves in our body and they're throughout our whole body. And so they're burning, they're on fire, they're painful and then there's indications and research now that talks about gadolidium gets and is involved with the mitochondria and with the bone marrow, it's, it's molecule is the same size as calcium. So gadolidium and calcium compete and the gadolidium is winning out and so then you know calcium is such an important nutrient that our body uses daily to help us function everything from teeth to heart to liver all of it right and so when it's when the gadolidium is beating that calcium out, you know,
it's all bets are off. So small, small fiber and erupt these one, mass cell activation syndrome is another and you can probably explain that better than me, but it's a histamine response, right? And your histamines are just going crazy. And the mass cell is intended to give us a warning, it's saying there's something wrong. And I'm trying to protect you. I'm your body and I'm going to send all these warriors out to protect you. And it just can't compete, right? It just can't get ahead of it. So the mass cells then typically can set off. And I had this cytokine storms. So I had a cytokine storm eight out of 12 cytokines that they tested were off the charts. We sent all my records to a research hospital, a very large research hospital. They returned all the files and said, that lady's one sick lady and we don't want to have anything to do with her. So and we know that we know, I mean, we know in the Gata-Lidium community, we hear that all the time. And that's because Gata-Lidium's not talked about. If you talk to your doctor about it, a lot of times they'll say it's anxiety. You've been reading too much Google or, you know, doing too much self-diagnosis. You're on a forum somewhere getting bad information. And they will discount it. They will discount it. And they will just, you know, a lot of times they'll try and diagnose you and give you an SSRI to reduce your anxiety. But that's not really what it is. It's heavy metal toxicity. Our world is lacking in toxicologists right now. That's an area that we need more doctors is in toxicology because of this heavy metal and other toxicants that we're coming across, right? Roundup, all those things. I mean, the issue is not a sexy direction to go as a doctor researcher. And because now, now essentially, you're pointing at the people that are essentially giving money for research, you know, to promote their own product. And as you are pointing to them, now you are then upsetting than the research institutions ability to gain money for research. And so you're going to be, you know, quieted as quickly as possible. Yeah, you're definitely swimming against the strain. That's for sure. But I think then, Marcel, SideKindStorm, Small Fiber Narapathy, those are things that people get right out of the gate. Interesting. You said that this podcast was going to be for some of your cancer patients to see. And I have a not a funny story, but I have a story about that because I've had multiple diagnoses. My diagnoses take up a full page of list. And I recently got three heart diagnoses, but my doctor and sent me to look at a cancer medicine. And she said, just get on the forum and go see what these people are taking and how it's helping them. And maybe it will help with some of your symptoms. We'll look at it, right? And I don't do pharma products, but I do natural products. So I went out on this forum and a hundred people from that cancer group joined our Gatellitium support group three days later because they were like, oh my gosh, I thought all my symptoms were related to my cancer drugs. But now based on the things you're talking about, I think my symptoms might be related to Gatellitium retention. And so it's a aha moment for those people, right? And it's an aha moment for anyone who connects the dots. As I mentioned offline two a minute ago, we're seeing a huge uptick in MS patients coming to our group. And that's because they get they get imaged once or twice a year, usually with Gatellitium to look for live lesions or new lesions in their brain. And then they inject the Gatellitium to see it. But patients are like so upset. So just disrupt that they've been poisoned on top of living with a disease. Yeah, because essentially it's I mean, here you're dealing with a neurological condition, yeah, autoimmune neurological condition. And now you're infusing something that is causing a neurological condition and also causing confusion in the immune system, triggering inflammation. So, you know, as you are monitoring, you are actually driving the disease, you're much further along and making it much more complex. Right. And I think it's because Gatellitium is a foreigner to the body. It doesn't serve any physiological or biological reason to ever be in the human body. And so the body is sending out all its macrophishes, all its T cells saying alert alert alert. And the marketing part of this is it's wrapped in a lagging and tended to keep it safe. Right. And if that were the case, that would be okay. But we now know that lagging something's wrong. And so, um, free got and they'll say, well, free got all inium isn't ever free in the body because even if it disassociates from the ligand, it will find another molecule, married to the other molecule and well, it's off the dance floor to go hide out somewhere. Um, and so where do you know, so they then infuse it. I mean, when you say ghosts everywhere in the body, are there locations where it tends to go most? We hear a lot of patients talk about old injuries. Um, you know, they might have had a ski injury on their knee or a shoulder and they will, they will complain of more pain in those areas. Like it might, and I don't think we have proof of that right now from our testing, but a lot of patients will say, um, you know, I had an old shoulder injury and now it's really hurting. And even to my point, um, I got a calcifications in the shoulders. They were able to go in and vacuum and break them up and vacuum out those calcifications. Had I known what I know now I would have had those tested for gadolidium because we are testing biopsies and skin and different parts, even teeth were starting to test and we're finding gadolidium in all those things. I've read multiple autopsy reports and gadolidiums throughout the body. Years later. And I'm curious. I mean, this is just something came to my mind right now. You talk about the correlation between gadolinium and calcium. And frequently with, you know, women with breast cancer, then, you know, when they do scan and say, oh, you have some calcifications there, which is, you know, their mind is pre-cancerous. So could it be then that it's actually gadolinium that is triggering some of that, do you feel? I think it's very possible. And I'm not an expert. I'm not a doctor, you know, but we can, I mean, they can see gadolidium in other, when you go back for other imaging, they can see it. Very few radiologists would ever say to you, oh, look right there. There's a big globic gadolidium, right? That just wouldn't be very good for their business. So, but yeah, we can see it. And there, you know, I mean, we look at my old ones and you can see the gadolidium in different places. So it is visible. And the thing with calcium, like you're saying, I mean, we needed a nerve conduction. We needed a brain function, you know, heart contraction. Any kind of nerve where you're kind of contracting a muscle, you're using calcium in that. And then you have the, you know, the ion channels, you know, calcium channels through the cell wall membrane. So any kind of cellular transport, you know, or any nutritional transport, you know, through the membrane involves calcium. So obviously bones, we all need no bones and nobody wants that osteoporosis or osteopenia. So here you have then, you know, let's say females that are on a anti-hormone drug and drug, you know, to get rid of the hormones. So now they're challenged with their bones anyway because they have no hormones. And then you add gadolinium that's ain't going to compete with the calcium. And that's in their bone, you know, driving that disease even more. So, you know, there's a lot of kind of downstream effects that you may not even think of that is going to take place with the gadolinium. Right. And I think it's a great repeat customer model because as it moves around in the body or settles, then you get a flare and people find themselves going back to the doctor for nothing that they ever gotten the machine for in the first place, right? And then they all said and have a new autoimmune disease. They have a calcification somewhere, all kinds of things. It is a huge problem. And so in your mind, I mean, gadolinium actually never may never leave the body. It may stay there for as long as your birth certificate is still active. Yes. 100%. I may ears out and it's still high. And as I mentioned, it's high in my body everywhere. So, and how do you measure it? I mean, we have some things here that we do, like, you know, collect urine after a provocation or you can look at that.
hair. Yeah, how do you measure your gallenium? Um, well, I'm part of a study and they measure it in your fingernails, your hair, your blood serum, and your urine. And that's for the study. And it's high for me and all of those areas. Um, the most common thing that we when people join the support group that I'm part of, we have them, we suggest that they do a urine test. And the urine test is really only good for one thing. And that is to show how much you're excreting at the time. So they're happening cases where people have symptoms that are related to gallenium that we have documented that come out of the medication guides that are provided by the FDA on the FDA website. Um, but urine tests are really only good to show how much your body's excreting. I would say to people who are going to go through the the effort of getting a urine test because you have to collect the urine for 24 hours is to do a full metal panel so that you can look at arsenic and lead and mercury and gallenium and then work with your doctor, such as yourself, who's looking holistically and can come up with a plan for you because what we find in running those urine tests is you're excreting gallenium, but you're also excreting lead or arsenic. And and where I live in Idaho arsenics in the water. So um, it was well water and farming community. So um, it's possible that patients would have more than one type of heavy metal in their system. And so you would want to have a doctor looking holistic. The at having a full plan, right? Because as you remove, if you keylaid or detox as you're removing one metal, um, things are shifting and even if one metal doesn't show up, it might show up later because think of it like an onion and you're peeling the layers of an onion and things start to move around again. So it gets complex. As you know, you treat patients, um, you probably could speak a way more about it than me, but just to advocate for what you do, I mean, it's really important. And I tell patients all the time, people tend to get on supplements. They're like, oh, I need to get on these supplements. I have mineral gaping or I have, you know, whatever. And that's dangerous too. If your pathways aren't open and you're not detoxing properly because this gadolidium or other metals have impacted your gut health, then your ability to digest and process and your liver's clogged up or your kidneys are clogged up, you're you're going to make a mass if you try to do it. This is not a DIY project. Is what I want people to know. It's not a DIY project. But obviously, you know, it is going to be less than it was when we started. It's just that the flow is still continual or may be even stronger at this time as the body is clearing it out. Right. And anytime you provoke use a provoking agent, it's going your number is going to typically go up. And that's where I think it's important that patients understand that too is that if you're sick and you key late or you throw an agent at it to key late it and provoke it, you plan to be sicker for a little bit. You know, I used to tell patients just go with the flare. It's called the flare or go with it, you know, I don't tell them that anymore because it can be dangerous and you need to be working with a doctor. But flare is nor is typical. And if you flare just means you're sick, your body's sick and it's working hard to get well. And it's it's just another way for your body to signal to you that you're sick, right? And and natural foods, you know, like we have food products that key late. And so sometimes people say I went for Mexican food and cilantro's a key later and I feel terrible the next day. So what you call this, I mean you're using a term called gadolinium deposition disease. So there's an actual disease associated with gadolinium accumulating in the body. And so is that a recognized disease? No. And that's an important part, right? That's an important note. The only disease associated with gadolinium at this point is nephrogenic systemic fibrosis. And that is was considered to be only if you had bad kidneys. That has since been dispeled, right? It doesn't matter what your kidney, I mean, it matters what your kidneys are doing, believe me. But in regards to NSF, you do not have to have bad kidneys to be diagnosed with NSF. We have patients who have been diagnosed with NSF. And NSF nephrogenic systemic fibrosis. Nephro is a Greek word for kidney. Systemic means your whole body, so it can go into, you know, it can impact your liver, your heart, your lungs, your kidneys. It's systemic. And then fibrosis has to do with hardening, has to do with thick, thick knee, has to do with stiffness, has to do. And it's a call it can relate to collagen. So the collagen in the body, you know, gets stiff and gets whatever. And so I think it's important to realize gadolinium deposition disease has not been recognized. We just got ICD 10 billing codes for gadolinium. The first round of those ICD 10 billing codes was in 2023. So there is codes for the doctors to bill it as a toxicant, but not as gadolinium deposition disease. And that's still being worked out. So. And so because the research is quite clear, right? And regards to this, and they still don't recognize it as a disease. No, because they won't talk about it. They won't talk about it. So you have to talk about it if you're going to recognize it as a disease. Well, we haven't got anyone who's willing to talk to us. So. Yeah. But like, just want to reiterate, but the research is there. There's this clear research to show that, you know, gadolinium toxicity is a real thing that when you infuse it as a contrast agent, it doesn't just leave the body within 24 hours or so. It stays in the system. And also it has an impact on like you talked where the calcium is supposed to function gadolinium, takes its role and create havoc in all those areas. Yes, it's it is it is known to be problematic. It just doesn't have a finalized label. Diagnostic label, yeah. Okay. And so what what can people do? I mean, because a lot of obviously there are there are people that have received, you know, these this gadolinium for imaging. What are some of the strategies that they should consider now when they've been exposed? Well, we were asking about the research. I want to just back up for just a second. So there is research that supports that it causes mitochondria dysfunction and impaired cellular energy production, immune dysregulation and chronic inflammation, mast cell activation and hypersensitive, hypersensitivity syndromes, astro, astrocyte adhesion and neurological changes, bone marrow involvement and altered hematoma post-josus, lamp and eye metalosis and nanoparticle persistence. So nanoparticles is an interesting because we see it. We can see the nanoparticles in the kidneys and in the different parts of the body. So we know it's there. We know it's causing chaos. What would we suggest people do? Kulations one option. DGPA is actually used as the ligand in several of the brands and it's used as a key later and it's a very strong key later in what I would want people to understand about chelation if that's your choice of trying to get rid of this is every key later on the market has its own pros and cons and its stability to be able to grab the the gadolinium molecule and pull it all the way out of the body through the kidneys through the bowel. It has to be strong enough to hang onto it and a lot of keylators on the market today aren't strong enough to hold that gadolinium all the way out of the body. So what you get is you get redistribution because it will let go of it as it's traveling through the body and then it's somewhere else that it wasn't a ridge you know it wasn't it's moving around. So that's an important thing. So when you're going to a chelation doctor you need to make sure they understand this stability of the different keylators and what their pros and cons are for each of those. DTPA as I said is one of the keylators that's wrapped in the like and of the manufacturing process so we know it has a strong bond towards gadolinium. So we have a lot of success Dr. Richard Samalka is the leading expert there he's written lots of books he's been published 300 to our more times on this topic. And he was a radiologist and then he gave up the second half of his career just to help patients with this. So DDPA EDTA is another one that they use doesn't have as strong a bonds. We're waiting on a product called HOPO H.
OPO and that's, that was originally funded to be for gadolidium, but they moved the funding to lead. So it's going to probably be released for lead and it's in trials, it's in human trials right now, hope, and we would use it off label. I mean, we've tested hope, a lot of patients, gadolidium patients are testing the hope, even though it's unreleased from the FDA version, and they're seeing really good results. So we're hopeful there. Other things you can do is just detoxing, right? Even if you detox, we kind of talked about that onion and how you, the onion peels and you get other layers, but sometimes people feel good when they just detox, using natural products, and they get some energy back, even though they're still fighting with the gadolidium inside the body and it's still creating chaos, you can get some returned improvement in, in energy and that kind of thing, doing detoxing, even if you're not addressing specifically the gadolidium. And the one that's on trial, FDA trial right now, the hopeful, is that accessible for people? It does, it is being used, but it's not, it's being shipped from a lab in China. And I don't really talk about it, and I don't promote it because I want it to be the FDA approved one. But I will tell you that the people that they're, they're using it with, and they are using it with a doctor for testing and stuff, and they are seeing good results. But it's hopeful that it will be out soon. I think the gadolidium manufacturers know it's problematic. And so maybe they're hopeful that this will get released sooner than later. And when you say that this, this drug, this key lading agent is seeming to have good, good effect, I mean, what, what do you base that on? Just people are measuring it, right? So they're measuring it through blood stool urine, and they're seeing, they're seeing the numbers go down, they're seeing their symptoms disappear, they're getting brain clarity, they're getting energy back, they're getting mobility back. We have a lot of patients who, like you talked about, facial relations, and they can't walk there in wheelchairs, they're on canes, they're really struggling to walk because the facelations get so bad. And that's kind of just a shaking or a twitching that occurs. So yeah, there's lots of different things. Unfortunately, insurance pays to inject this, but then they offer nothing to get it out of your body safely, efficiently, effectively. And so we're doing our own triaging where patients are doing self triaging, and then we're working with people. Another tool that works really well is nice and nice and detox with sauna, right? With infrared sauna, that seems to help a lot of patients. And we have measured it again through the stool and the urine, and we can see it excreting, we they do, you know, pre during an after testing, because we want to collect the data, we want to see what's really going to help people. A lot of us who do chelation, then we found that we've gotten new autoimmune diseases, and we're not sure that seems to be a correlation between the mineral gaping and the nutrients that we're not getting. And so that's why I say it's not a DIY project, because you can get yourself into a lot of trouble. Yeah, yeah, and any any time you you key late or you kind of like mineral redistribution or have metal redistribution, can really set things off. And yeah, it is it is good to have somebody there managing and monitoring. Yeah. So what going back to you, what symptoms did you get from from all of this? What were the full impact on you after the Gatlinium? My full impact has been ongoing and it's growing. So my first, my first symptom was memory. I went back in the machine for a second time to check for Alzheimer's at the age of 56. I didn't have Alzheimer's, but it's the testing did prove that my brain was injured in four areas. So I really focused on chelation to get to get my brain function back. So I did 12 12 things of DTPA calcium zinc chelation over a one year period. And it became diminishing returns. And so at that point, I got double vision and the double vision scared me away from doing any more chelation. What I've learned now and what after talking to thousands of patients, it seems like maybe the Gatlinium was just going through. I do have a I forgot what they call it, but I have a big glob of something in my vision. And we're not sure what that is and probably won't know until autopsy time. But I've so it's impacted my dental. I've done $14,000 in dental work. And I don't know if it's the machine, the magnets in the machine that are just if you have a mouth full of metal that are, you know, loosening those fillings, we don't know we're asking those questions and we're hopeful that they will get involved and figure that out for us. I got three heart diagnosis is the most recent thing two years ago, I got diagnosed with pulmonary fibrosis last year. I got diagnosed with hyper trophic myocarditis SBT, bradycardia, and my pulse runs about 44 and 44 is pretty low different. My kidneys have now got problems. My liver is a measuring at 17 and the average liver measures at 14, 14 to 15 minds at 17. And people will say, well, it's a fatty liver. It's not fatty liver. It's something else. We're figuring that out. Lupus was a diagnosis I was given. Fiber myelgia was one, ebV. And then doctors will look at you and say, you can't possibly have all those diagnoses. And I'm like, you're right. I have got a lidian deposition disease. I don't have any of these other things. You're treating all the wrong things. Until, yeah, the laundry, the laundry list of diagnosis just goes on. The other thing people get is ocular problems. And mast cell, we talked about neurogenic bladder. So there's a lot of burning in the bladder. I don't know if it's the metal that causes the inflammation. And so people complain about urination, how painful it is choking as a problem. Thiroiditis, a lot of people get nodules on their thyroid. We have just, you know, we do these informal polls in the group. And 52% of the patients say they got one to three new diagnosesies after having gadolidium. They went back to the doctor, 53% went back to the doctor five to 10 times. And the doctor wasn't interested in talking to them about gadolidium. 54% say they have worse GI issues, 88% say they have chronic pain. And the chronic pain is bad. I mean, it's bad because the clothing, the blankets on your body, hurt. I mean, the weight of that just hurts so bad. And it's in the long bones. And so it impacts your sleep. Dental issues, 52% that said that dental issues, 59% said that their sleep pattern totally changed. 54% got diagnosed with thyroid issues that they never had before. 94% said that they related to neurotoxicity symptoms that aligned with how the Cleveland clinic defines heavy metals and neurotoxicity. So people can go out there and check, you know, do their own Google, Dr. Google. And then 91% of our people say that they were never given informed consent. And I think if we could change anything, it would be informed consent. Because if you know what you're going to inject in your body and you know the risks, then the medical system has done their job. Cancer patients all the time will take chemo drugs and they know how horrible they are. They lose their hair. It kills all of their good cells. But they still choose to take it. And that's a risk that you go in knowing because we give the patient's information. We say, here's all the things these cancer drugs are going to do to your body. We never say that about that. Alitium 91% I never got any informed consent. So if we can make a change there, that would be huge. I would be happy. Yeah. That's outrageous. Well, and Debbie, this was phenomenal. And thank you for your work in this. And I'm sorry that you're in this position to, you know, feel the urgency to do this work. But what you're doing now obviously is helping a large population that that is in need. So again, what is the name of your book and where can people find it?
It's on Amazon and it's called Gatellitium Deposition and Tuxicity humanizing a life-changing event. It's my story and 24 other people's story. I have another book coming out this fall. This one really talks about people's stories. The next book talks about the science, the science behind it. And all the things that we listed that we know, we have research now that talks about what happens to humans. Okay, wonderful. Well, Debbie, thank you so much for taking this time and I truly appreciate you bringing awareness on such an important topic. Thank you and thank you for all the work you do with all your patients. Nice to meet you, family. Likewise, thank you. Bye. Thank you for spending this time with me today. I know how much courage it takes to seek information and explore your options after a cancer diagnosis. The information shared in this podcast is for educational purposes only and is not intended to diagnose or replace medical care. My goal is to help you make informed decisions and feel empowered as you move forward. If you're looking for personalized guidance and want to explore an integrated approach alongside your current treatment plan, my team and I at the Carpool Center would be honored to support you. You can learn more at schedule consultation at the CarpoolCenter.com. And if this episode brought you value, I encourage you to follow the show so you don't miss future conversations. Thank you for being here. I'll see you next time.
Podcast Summary
Key Points:
Debbie Heisslembert shares her personal experience with gadolinium toxicity after multiple MRI contrast injections, leading to severe symptoms like memory loss, burning pain, and early retirement.
Gadolinium is a toxic rare earth metal that accumulates in the brain, bones, tissues, and organs, competing with calcium and disrupting bodily functions.
Common diagnoses in affected patients include small fiber neuropathy, mast cell activation syndrome, and cytokine storms, often misattributed to anxiety or other conditions.
The support group has grown from 1,200 to over 15,000 members, with a significant uptick in MS and cancer patients who received repeated contrast-enhanced imaging.
Testing methods include urine, hair, blood, and fingernail analyses, but urine tests only show current excretion levels; a full metal panel is recommended.
Detoxification is complex and not a DIY project; it requires holistic medical supervision to avoid worsening symptoms, as metals like lead and arsenic may also be present.
Medical and research communities often dismiss gadolinium toxicity due to financial conflicts of interest, limiting awareness and toxicology expertise.
Summary:
In this episode, Dr. Karl Fult interviews Debbie Heisslembert, who shares her eight-year journey with gadolinium toxicity after receiving four MRI contrast injections for pancreatitis. She describes how the toxic metal, which is wrapped in a ligand intended to keep it safe, can disassociate and accumulate throughout the body, competing with calcium and causing systemic damage.
Her symptoms included memory loss, electrocution-like sensations, severe bone pain, and multiple diagnoses like small fiber neuropathy and mast cell activation syndrome. She emphasizes that gadolinium does not serve any biological purpose and can remain in the body for years, as evidenced by her own high levels in blood, hair, urine, and fingernails. Heisslembert highlights the lack of awareness among doctors, who often dismiss symptoms as anxiety, and notes the financial conflicts that discourage research into this issue.
She advises patients to undergo full metal panels, work with holistic practitioners, and avoid self-detoxification, as the process can be dangerous and complex. The discussion also touches on how cancer and MS patients, who undergo frequent imaging, may be unknowingly affected, with many realizing their symptoms are linked to gadolinium retention rather than their primary disease. The episode underscores the need for greater toxicology expertise and patient advocacy.
FAQs
Gadolinium is a toxic rare earth metal used as a contrast agent in MRI scans. It is injected intravenously and helps create clearer images by 'glowing' in the body, reducing radiologists' diagnostic time.
Yes, gadolinium can accumulate and remain in the body for years, even after a single injection. It has been found in the brain, bones, tissues, and organs, and can cause long-term health issues.
Common symptoms include small fiber neuropathy, burning bone pain, memory loss, cognitive issues, fatigue, mast cell activation syndrome, and cytokine storms. These can be systemic, affecting multiple organs and bodily functions.
Diagnosis often involves urine tests, which show how much gadolinium you are excreting, or more comprehensive tests on hair, fingernails, blood serum, and urine, as used in research studies. A full metal panel can also detect other heavy metals like lead or arsenic.
Treatment is complex and should be guided by a holistic doctor. It may involve detoxification or chelation, but it is not a DIY project. Patients may experience flares and should work with a professional to manage symptoms safely.
Reactions can vary, and even if you don't react the first time, toxicity can build up over time. Gadolinium competes with calcium in the body, and its effects may become more apparent as it accumulates.
Chat with AI
Loading...
Pro features
Go deeper with this episode
Unlock creator-grade tools that turn any transcript into show notes and subtitle files.