Agreement for the Advanced Metal Toxicology Protocol

Gary Osborn. RPh, CCN, President, ApothéCure

CEO, Texas Institute of Functional Medicines

 ApothéCure’s New Oral and Parenteral Chelators - Ca-EDTA

New oral and parenteral chelators, including calcium EDTA, have been formulated by ApothéCure, under the specific direction of Garry F. Gordon, MD, DO, MD(H).  Dr. Gordon and ApothéCure are actively co-developing the heavy metal detoxification protocols in conjunction with the Texas Institute of Functional Medicines. 

 These new oral and parenteral chelators were the result of Dr. Gordon’s unyielding search for an affordable, safe and effective approach to heavy metal detoxification.   Previously, there has never before been an affordable injection in the United States as effective and safe as this new oral and parenteral chelation approach that has been refined to such a synergistic manner as by Dr. Gordon, ApothéCure, and the Texas Institute of Functional Medicines.  

 The Expertise Behind ApothéCure’s New Oral and Parenteral Chelators

Dr. Gordon received his Doctor of Osteopathy in 1958 from the Chicago College of Osteopathy in Illinois.  He received his Honorary MD degree from the University of California Irvine in 1962 and completed his Radiology Residency from Mt. Zion in San Francisco, California in 1964.  For many years, he was the Medical Director of Mineral Lab in Hayward, California, a leading laboratory for trace mineral analysis worldwide.  Dr. Gordon is on the Board of Homeopathic Medical Examiners for Arizona and is Co-Founder of the American College for Advancement in Medicine (ACAM).  He is Founder/President of the International College of Advance Longevity (ICALM) and Board Member of International Oxidative Medicine Association (IOMA).  With Morton Walker, DPM, Dr. Gordon co-authored The Chelation Answer.  He is advisor to the American Board of Chelation Therapy and past instructor and examiner for all chelation physicians.  He is responsible for Peer Review for Chelation Therapy in the State of Arizona.  As an internationally recognized expert on chelation therapy, Dr. Gordon is now attempting to establish standards for the proper use of oral and intravenous chelation therapy as an adjunct therapy for all diseases. 

 Dr. Gordon is the author of a protocol that has been used in the treatment of over 1,000,000 patients.  He is co-founder of the American Board of Chelation Therapy (ABCT).   Resulting from a renewed focus on the importance of heavy metal toxicity, in March 2002, the ABCT officially changed its name to the American Board of Metal Toxicology.  This name change was the direct result of the development of these advanced chelation protocols.

 Dr. Gordon has devoted over 30 years of his life to the study of trace mineral metabolism, heavy metal toxicity, and chelation therapy.  This intravenous chelation protocol was officially adopted by ACAM many years ago.  The original protocol has been amended twice in the ensuing 30 years and Dr. Gordon does not want to repeat the mistake of prematurely introducing a protocol.  This has tended to put things into stone, where it has been difficult to change later. 

 Many other natural supplements can be employed to amplify the benefits of this process, and exciting new applications in chelation therapy are being studied.  This is an evolving process and we still have not gained adequate information to fully define the potential benefits and risks, all of which must be fully considered before we dare to offer a “protocol”.

 Thus, everyone has to stay flexible, with an open door of communication, and an exchange of information between all of us.  By sharing information, such as the fecal and urine test results, we may be able to establish just what steps seem to produce the greatest yield. Of course, we are doing better by far than we dreamed possible, but imagine the possibilities for improvement as we look for adjunctive steps.  For example, as when preloading for 2-5 days with oral chelators such as Garlic Plus (contains 133 mg of oral EDTA), special forms of well tolerated vitamin C  (Beyond C) and alginates, Lipoic acid etc. 

 Protecting the Doctor and the Patient

Because Dr. Gordon reviews complaints from patients of chelating physicians that are sent to the Board of Homeopathic Medical Examiners to be reviewed by the Peer Review Committee for Chelation Therapy, Dr. Gordon is very concerned about protecting both the health care practitioners and the patients due to the litigious nature of the American population.   The premature supplying of “protocols” for the use of 1 to 30 minute IV calcium EDTA chelation combined with oral chelators including oral EDTA, raises several potential legal problems, which we will hopefully avoid by moving slowly and cautiously before anything is set in stone.

 Dr. Gordon has spent the past 30 years as a medical legal expert defending doctors’ use of chelation therapy, often without recompense.  With the enormous exigent demands for Dr. Gordon’s expertise, he is no longer available to assist physicians with medical legal challenges without charge.  Dr. Gordon believes that by taking preventive medical legal steps, just as we all want our patients to follow preventive medical steps, we can all be fully protected.

 Dr. Gordon and ApothéCure’s foremost concern is that of protecting the doctor and the patient.  For this reason, certain procedures must be completed prior to obtaining anything like the Advanced Metal Toxicology Protocols that are being developed now, and being changed on a weekly basis, as they are regularly improved:

 1.)     ApothéCure must receive proof of completed chelation therapy training in a related field. The following are acceptable:  American College of Nutrition (ACN), International College of Integrative Medicine (ICIM) - previously known as GLCCM, American Academy of Anti-Aging (A⁴M), American Academy of Environmental Medicine (AAEM), IOMA, or ACAM - any chelation training not received from the above listed entities are subject to pre-approval by the American Board of Metal Toxicology.

2.)  Each physician must design an Informed Consent Form subject to approval by ApothéCure.  It must include the following information:

a)  the Advanced Metal Toxicology Protocol is considered a new use of chelation therapy, although it has been widely approved throughout the world as a treatment of heavy metal toxicity;

b)        chelation therapy is an evolving science and adequate information regarding ideal frequency of administration or ideal adjuvant therapies still have not been fully defined;

c)  there is always the possibility of risks and/or side effects, as with any medical procedure ( see ACAM standard chelation protocol for this information);

d) it must be explained that this therapy is being given more rapidly than was commonly done in the US, even though in Europe it has been routinely given more rapidly for over 30 years with tremendous safety records (which is not different from the tremendous safety record we have come to expect with the standard  1.5 to 3 hour administration used on over 1 million patients under the ACAM protocol - without a single reported death from the therapy);

e)  that all of these issues have been fully discussed with the patient, the patient has considered this information and agrees to proceed with the therapy. 

3.)     A copy of the pre-approved Informed Consent Form that you develop for your practice must be on file with ApothéCure.

4.)     A signed statement must be provided to ApothéCure guaranteeing the approved Informed Consent Form will be given to and signed by each patient prior to receiving the Advanced Metal Toxicology Protocol.

Upon ApothéCure’s receipt of the aforementioned information, different levels of access to the evolving new protocols will be granted on a planned website, depending upon the complexity of practice objectives of each individual physician. This website will be continuously upgraded, making available new protocols for different health problems, which are still being developed.  The Advanced Metal Toxicology Protocols will be available for your review and input upon ApothéCure’s receipt of the requested materials.

Protecting the Future of Metal Toxicology

Along with the protection of doctors and their patients, Dr. Gordon feels it is imperative that this exciting new advanced application of chelation therapy also be protected.  One precaution implemented by ApothéCure is the strict guidelines.  Dr. Gordon, in conjunction with ApothéCure, strongly request that only those with a serious determination for bettering the health of their patients acquire and utilize the Advanced Metal Toxicology Protocol.  Careless or irresponsible use by busy physicians that do not adequately educate themselves or their patients regarding these exciting new applications of chelation therapy could have a detrimental effect on a therapy that, we believe, is destined to soon be adopted into all of mainstream medicine.  If we learn to accurately express the benefits seen from the truly effective heavy metal detoxification, it would dwarf prior results.  This is because the slow infusions prevented reaching effective blood levels of chelators, in addition to failing to realize the need for concurrent oral chelation to prevent enterohepatic reuptake of toxic metals that IV chelators were depositing in the bowel.

Dr. Gordon is convinced that deficiencies or excesses of trace metals are behind virtually all health problems, and therefore, it is realistic to believe that there should be some potential benefit in virtually any health problem when you lower the overall toxic metal load in the patient.  He believes that the future of these new advanced uses of chelation therapy being developing is virtually unlimited, but they should not be offered as a panacea.  These protocols and potential benefits need to be explained fully and accurately to the patient.  There are many widely available resources, including EPA, CDC and FDA, which have attempted to educate the public regarding the dangers of low-level exposures to toxic metals and symptoms associated with these exposures.

Metal Toxicology Education

It is vital that physicians educate their patients, helping them become aware of the tremendous benefits that this new form of chelation therapy can obtain.  To assist physicians in this task, Dr. Gordon has placed on his website, www.gordonresearch.com, informative, enlightening data.  He has also created links to a variety of other sites that contain further instruction. This is a continuously evolving process.

It is essential that patients understand the significance of fecal and urine mineral provocative testing, since without testing it is impossible to know how much progress is being made, and/or which toxins may still be in your environment, since the best part of this specialty it to identify and remove all potential sources of toxic exposures. This is covered in detail on Dr. Gordon’s website.

Everyone also needs to further familiarize them self with the controversy that has surrounded oral chelation since the beginning of its use. There are many detractors making claims of potential harm from ingesting oral EDTA.  It is inevitable that patients will run across this information, but these accusations are clearly without merit.  This is proven by the over 500 abstracts of published references on Dr. Gordon’s website.   Dr. Gordon also has made available documentation that supports oral chelation and calcium EDTA. 

Likewise, Dr. Gordon encourages every doctor to take the necessary steps to qualify themselves adequately for their intended use of these new advanced applications of chelation therapy.  Dr. Gordon contends that very few physicians would observe a new procedure in plastic surgery, then go home and start employing it, unless the procedure fell within the realm of the physician’s field of expertise.  The more knowledgeable each physician becomes in the field of nutrition, trace mineral metabolism, heavy metal toxicity and/or chelation therapy, the better they will be able to apply these exciting new approaches for the improvement of patients’ health.

Dr. Gordon has spent over 30 years in the field of trace mineral metabolism, heavy metal toxicity and chelation therapy and has spent over one million dollars in his postgraduate medical education in the last 15 years alone.  The transfer of this information to interested new health professionals cannot be accomplished in a single weekend review.  Education is a continual process, especially with the ever expanding knowledge in the field of metal toxicology. 

Dr. Gordon is convinced of the tremendous market for health professionals knowledgeable in (heavy) metal toxicology, and the use of oral and one minute IV chelation therapy in dealing with this epidemic of metal overload we all have today.  Because of the class action suit against dentists over mercury and the suit against vaccination companies over thiomersal, it is essential to document levels of toxic metals in your patients since some may qualify to join class action suits. This litigation, combined with the increasing recognition by everyone of just how toxic the world we live in has become, and with the help of the media in disclosing these problems, should lead to a shortage of health care professionals qualified to deal with this exciting new field. 

Dr. Gordon will be lecturing about heavy metal toxicity at many locations around the world.  In the coming months he will be teaching at a special, two-day training session, in Dallas on June 7 – 8, 2002.  To reduce the cost and time spent learning these vital principles, Dr. Gordon, ApothéCure and Texas Institute of Functional Medicines is hoping to develop a home based training course.  They hope that someday they will be able to persuade the American Board of Metal Toxicology to eventually provide different levels of certification for doctors with limited time.  So that not everyone getting qualified by ABCT (now ABMT) is expected to be able to also treat cardiovascular disease competently, which is admittedly a specialized area of application of basic metal binding knowledge.

Oral and Parenteral Chelators Essential for all Fields of Medicine

Dr. Gordon, whom some consider to be the father of the chelation therapy movement in the United States, was concerned that chelation therapy had become excessively focused on only treating cardiovascular disease.  His concern today is that the average practicing physician is entirely unaware of the extent of heavy metal toxicity in each individual patient.  This toxicity is impeding the doctor’s best efforts for the patient.  Dr. Gordon is convinced that the new rapid detoxification parenteral chelation supplemented with affordable and effective oral formulations constitutes a dramatic new breakthrough in chelation therapy that eventually will become widely used as a part of the treatment plan for virtually all patients, and for every health condition, including life extension.

The potential of an affordable one to five minute injection of calcium EDTA, opens up many new possibilities for improved protocols for every medical discipline.  This will have tremendous ramifications for those doctors planning to utilize metal detoxification employing the new protocols that we are now developing as these new uses for advanced chelation therapy will clearly have broad applicability in every field of medical practice.

Dr. Gordon believes that employing provocative testing where oral and intravenous chelators are concurrently administered provides evidence of the heavy metal burden the American population is experiencing.  The fecal and urine heavy metal excretion measured in these provocative testing, in virtually every patient, Dr. Gordon believes, will lead to heavy metal detoxification becoming employed in virtually every condition from asthma and arthritis to cancer and Parkinson’s disease throughout the world.  He makes it clear, however, that although the possibility that chelation therapy is necessary in virtually every field of medical specialty today, it is not a cure all by itself in the management of disease. 

Abuse and Misuse of Metal Toxicology

Unfortunately, something with such tremendous potential benefit also carries with it the potential for abuse.  It is important to recognize that although one to five minute injections of calcium EDTA have been used on tens of thousands of patients over the last 30 years in Europe. This use has been carefully documented by Dr. Walter Blumer to provide significant reduction in the incidents of cancer and heart disease. Most American literature discussing intravenous EDTA, whether sodium or calcium EDTA, describes its use in dilute one to three hour infusions.  Furthermore, the use of oral calcium EDTA, fell into disfavor partly because of its abuse by industrial physicians, who chose to rely on its effective de-leading activities, rather than more appropriately, requiring employers to lower the level of toxic metal exposure in the work place.

 Dr. Gordon’s recommendation for fecal and urine provocative testing is available on his website.  He particularly stresses avoiding the problem of labeling anything as toxicity or poisoning unless the levels truly would qualify in a court of law, for such terms. In other words, Dr. Gordon believes that each person today who is given the combination oral and parenteral provocation will have adequately elevated levels of one or more toxic metals seen in the fecal or urine test.  A physician knowledgeable in heavy metal toxicity must state to their patient that in their professional judgment, the level of toxic metals seen in their fecal or urine test is not in the best interest for achieving their stated health goal.  That health goal may be to have a better chance of recovering from arthritis, cancer, asthma, autism, fibromyalgia, or merely to live longer.

 Dr. Gordon is very concerned that with huge industries representing the various sources of pollution that we are all now exposed to, that their medical experts would feel obliged to challenge the individual health care practitioner who dares to call the average level of pollution that we are finding in all of us today sufficiently elevated to be a true case of poisoning or metal toxicity.  There will be cases uncovered that will be eligible for insurance reimbursement, possibly on industrial insurance.  However, this diagnosis carries realistic medical legal ramifications. To make this diagnosis stick, you must have numbers that are considerably higher than those you are generally encountering are in the average patient who is nonetheless excessively burdened with heavy metals, but generally will not eligible for 3^rd party reimbursement as a case of lead poisoning. 

 The final decision of what constitutes metal poisoning is, unfortunately, not entirely a scientific decision, but is actually primarily based on economics.  Everyone knows that these metals, i.e. lead, mercury, cadmium, etc., are extremely toxic, and there is no truly safe level.  Unfortunately, reality is that we must permit the workplaces in the United States to employ workers who are exposed to these toxins. If the standards were too low, many industries would have to close down and or go offshore. They would also, not be able to purchase necessary industrial insurance to cover their workers at affordable rates, so we would wind up making these essential industries bankrupt, with tremendous economic ramifications for our country.

 

Thus, there will be cases uncovered that will reveal true poisoning, because the levels are far more elevated than encountered in your regular practice, and the history of exposure is compatible with the diagnosis.   This may be an entire industrial plant, or a subdivision that is on top of a toxic dumpsite that is poisoning the population’s water, food or air supplies.  These true cases of poisoning must be dealt with responsibly, but hopefully, the vast majority of cases you will encounter will be elective – where you will be offering physician supervised elective heavy metal detoxification.  This describes the activities of the new specialty in medicine that Dr. Gordon believes will evolve from the new breakthroughs in chelation therapy we are now discussing.  Dr. Gordon believes these breakthroughs will have applicability to every field of medicine today, and that these breakthroughs require the tools of affordable, injectable and oral forms of calcium EDTA, as well as other chelators, and ApothéCure stands ready to make those tools available to you.

Oral Calcium EDTA

Today, oral calcium EDTA is widely used and FDA approved, but it is primarily used as an antioxidant and preservative in our food supply.  This use has lead to extensive research with abundant evidence regarding the long-term safety of EDTA. Dr. Gordon has researched EDTA for over 30 years and has made available over 500 published abstracts on oral EDTA, on his website, www.gordonresearch.com.  A review of this literature reveals tremendous potential benefits from long-term, even lifetime ingestion of oral EDTA containing nutritional detoxification based products to your patients at virtually no risk and at very low cost.

 Dr. Gordon is convinced that oral EDTA can be consumed safely, in significant quantities of one to six grams, daily over a lifetime, with tremendous potential benefits and virtually little or no risk.  However, he feels that there is so much documentation regarding the dangers of the heavy metal overload encountered in virtually every patient seen today in any medical practice. Therefore, it is highly desirable for physicians to take some training approved by the American Board of Metal Toxicology in the field of metal binding medicine, to better serve their patients in this new field. Please also see recommendations for Urine and Fecal provocative Mineral testing at www.gordonresearch.com

 

Metal Toxicology Protocol Agreement

The following medical practitioner has requested protocol information from Dr. Gordon and/or ApothéCure and agrees to follow any updates provided on at least a monthly basis.

Please type or print:

 

                                                                                                                                                           

                                    (Full Name)                                                              (Degree)

 

                                                                                                                                                           

                                                            (Physical Address)

 

                                                                                                                                                           

            (City)                                                   (State)                          (Zip)

 

                                                                                                                                                           

                                                            (Mailing Address – if different)

 

                                                                                                                                                           

            (City)                                                   (State)                          (Zip)

 

                        __________                       ___________                                     _______               

  (Office Telephone Number)                         (Office Fax Number)                         (Other                  ) 

 

                                                                                                                                                           

            (E-mail Address)                                                                        (Website Address)

 

 

Training

Course Title – Name of Training Facility                                                                 Date(s)

                                                                                                                                                             

 

                                                                                                                                                             

 

                                                                                                                                                             

 

                                                                                                                                                             

 

                                                                                                                                                             

 

                                                                                                                                                             

 

 

Attachments

The Metal Toxicology Protocol Agreement must be completed and returned with the following attachments:

 

1)  Informed Consent Form

 

2)  Signed Statement guaranteeing the approved Informed Consent Form will be given to and signed by each patient prior to receiving the Advance Metal Toxicology Protocol

 

 

 

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                        (Signature)                                                                                          (Date)