TOXIN AWARENESS & DETOX PROTOCOLS

NEWS REPORT

Montecito Fire Chiefs Meet With DETOXSCAN & F.A.C.E.S. Leadership to Discuss the Advancement of Toxin Awareness, Detox Protocols & Diagnostic Innovations for Firefighters

Montecito, CA — In a pivotal cross-agency meeting, DETOXSCAN Associate Editor Daniel Root and Lennard Goetze, President of F.A.C.E.S. (Firefighters Against Cancers & Exposures), convened with Fire Chief David Neels and Battalion Chief Shaun Davis of the Montecito Fire Department to address one of the most urgent crises in the modern fire service: occupational exposures and their lifelong health consequences.

Facilitated by integrative physician Dr. Leslie Valle Montoya—a clinical partner to DETOXSCAN and F.A.C.E.S. currently supporting firefighters responding to the Los Angeles wildfires—this meeting reinforced a shared mission: understanding the toxins firefighters face, implementing real detox pathways, and integrating new diagnostic tools such as point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) and OligoScan toxin analysis.

A Shared Priority:
Occupational Exposure Is No Longer Optional - It’s a Crisis

From the outset, both agencies aligned on one reality: firefighters are exposed to an unprecedented and escalating mix of carcinogens, neurotoxins, combustion by-products, plastics, PFAS, VOCs, and heavy metals. Exposure is inevitable—but the long-term consequences don’t have to be.

Chief Neels emphasized that Montecito firefighters returning from recent wildfires—especially the Eaton and Palisades Fires—were already reporting concerns that triggered statewide attention and motivated early testing. Yet when well intended groups attempted to perform on-site blood draws at fire camps without adequate vetting, Chief Neels halted the effort for his personnel.

“It’s really tough for me… to support someone I don’t know drawing bloods at a fire camp that we have not vetted at all,” he explained. “We were not supportive. We needed to step back, bring our firefighters home, and do this properly.”  That caution marked a turning point: the department sought credible partners, validated methods and quantifiable testing—three pillars that DETOXSCAN and F.A.C.E.S. were built for.

---

  

Introducing Metal Scanning Innovation: OligoScan Toxin Mapping & POCUS

During the meeting, Goetze and Dr. Robert L. Bard (a brief guest participant) demonstrated the value of non-invasive toxin detection, including the OligoScan—a clinical spectrometer that scans tissue for heavy metals and elements in minutes.

 

Dr. Bard shared his own verified mercury results and explained how the device can:

·        detect metals such as mercury, lead, arsenic, and thallium,

·        quantify tissue levels rather than temporary blood or urine snapshots,

·        provide data within minutes without needles or lab shipping delays,

·        serve as a rapid screening tool after fire incidents.

For Montecito’s leadership, the possibility of on-scene or same-day toxin screening—immediately after exposure—was compelling. Equally striking was the introduction of POCUS (Point-of-Care Ultrasound), now available in handheld formats as small as a smartphone, with elastography and Doppler. POCUS is increasingly used for internal organ evaluation, inflammation mapping, and identifying toxin-related fibrosis patterns.

“This is the Star Trek future,” Goetze said, noting that modern POCUS can be used in rigs, med units, and firehouses for quick assessment and triage—without invasive procedures.

Montecito’s Key Question: “How Do We Get Toxins Out of Our Firefighters?”

Battalion Chief Shaun Davis—head of the department’s Safety Committee—cut to the central dilemma:
“We know what’s in us. We know exposure is inevitable. But what do we do about it? What actually gets it out of us?”   This question marks a national gap many fire departments face. Prevention and PPE improvements help, but they cannot remove absorbed toxins already accumulating in organs, tissues, and endocrine systems.

Davis outlined the department’s three-part approach:

1.     Prevention – minimizing exposure via PPE practices and decontamination.

2.     Post-incident Decon – showers, gear isolation, and cleaning protocols.

3.     Post-exposure Treatment – the missing puzzle piece: effective detox methods that work.

 

This is where DETOXSCAN and its encyclopedic toxicology database offered what Davis called “the next piece we’ve been missing.” The DETOXSCAN.org platform catalogs:

·        known environmental and occupational toxins,

·        scientifically supported detox modalities,

·        clinical technologies,

·        global protocols including niacin-induced detoxification, sauna-based programs, and integrative methods.

Root explained how DETOXSCAN’s evidence-driven framework aligns with F.A.C.E.S.’ core mission: prevention, early detection, and real-world recovery solutions for firefighters.

 

The Evidence Firefighters Need: Real Detoxification in Action

To answer Davis’s question about what actually removes toxins, Root presented dramatic evidence from the Root Method detox program: A New York narcotics officer who had conducted over 200 meth-lab raids sweated out visible chemical compounds during sauna-based detox sessions—enough to discolor towels in vibrant patterns confirmed as residues such as sodium hydroxide (Drāno). “These are the kinds of toxins inside the body that can come out,” Root explained.

Firefighters in wildfire regions, meth-lab response, hazmat incidents, and structure fires experience similar exposures, making such detox outcomes directly relevant. Although Montecito firefighters are currently undergoing a Level 1 detox program at Dr. Montoya’s clinic, Root noted the availability of a Level 3 full 30-day detox protocol—a complete mobilization-and-elimination methodology used for decades in occupational medicine.

---

Building A Local Framework: Montecito Fire Positions Itself as a First-Mover

Chief Neels emphasized the advantage of being a Fire District—which grants him greater administrative flexibility and the authority to implement innovative programs quickly. “We can pivot and we can make things happen here,” he affirmed.

 

The department’s next steps, as outlined by Neels and Davis, include:

·        reviewing feedback from the six firefighters currently participating in Dr. Montoya’s program,

·        evaluating the potential integration of OligoScan and POCUS,

·        expanding education on exposure risks and detox solutions,

·        coordinating with the department’s medical director and national experts like Dr. Jeff Burgess (Firefighter Cancer Cohort Study).

Neels also requested further information, reports, and case studies on OligoScan accuracy and adoption in U.S. and international fire departments.

---

A Collaborative Future: Firefighters Deserve Options—And Proof

The meeting concluded with a shared commitment to collaboration, transparency, and scientific rigor. Goetze emphasized that every article, newsletter segment, and educational publish will be fully approved by the department before release. “We just want to save lives—just like you do,” he said. “Whatever you need, we are here.”

Chief Neels reciprocated, noting the value of having partners who can bring credible, vetted solutions to the table. Davis expressed eagerness to connect further with Root to align detox strategies with emerging national research. In a field where cancer remains the #1 killer of firefighters, Montecito Fire’s proactive stance—and the partnership with DETOXSCAN, F.A.C.E.S., and Dr. Leslie Valle Montoya—marks a powerful shift toward a new model: measurement, mitigation, detoxification, and early detection.

This meeting represents a landmark step in redefining firefighter health protection for the next generation.

SUPPLEMENTAL

The Next Battle in Occupational Exposure: Detecting and Mitigating Heavy Metals

By: Dr. Robert L. Bard

I have spent years scanning for cancer—breast, thyroid, prostate, liver, lymphatic disease—and for inflammatory conditions that often precede malignancy. In that process, I have met hundreds of first responders who did everything right on the job, yet were never warned about the long-term biological cost of service. What has become increasingly clear to me—especially over the past year—is that heavy metal toxicity is the next sensible, unavoidable frontier in occupational medicine.

Through the growth and application of DetoxScan.org, we have been able to evaluate individuals who appear “clinically normal” on the surface, yet demonstrate alarming internal burdens of mercury, lead, cadmium, arsenic, aluminum, and other metals. These findings are not isolated. They are patterned. And they correlate strongly with occupational exposure narratives I hear every day.

From Camp Lejeune veterans exposed to contaminated water, to burn-pit exposure in Iraq and Afghanistan, to Vietnam-era Agent Orange, to firefighters working plastics-heavy modern fires and Ground Zero responders from 9/11—one recurring pathogenic thread emerges: metals that accumulate silently and persist for decades.

Heavy metals are not benign. They are neurotoxins, endocrine disruptors, mitochondrial poisons, and immune modulators. Clinically, they are associated with chronic fatigue, cognitive decline, tremors, neuropathy, thyroid dysfunction, cardiovascular disease, autoimmune disorders, infertility, mood disturbances, and increased cancer susceptibility. These are not abstract theories—they are findings we see repeatedly when exposure history is paired with modern screening.

What has changed—and what gives me great optimism—is access to non-invasive screening technologies, including spectrophotometry and light-based tissue analysis. These tools allow us to assess metal burden safely, rapidly, and without radiation or invasive sampling. When paired with diagnostic imaging, laboratory studies, and clinical history, they expand our investigative lens dramatically.

As a self-described cancer detective, I can say this plainly: these technologies don’t just give us answers—they teach us which questions to ask next. They help connect unexplained inflammation, metabolic dysfunction, and neurological symptoms to tangible, measurable causes.

Early cancer detection saved countless lives. I believe early toxic burden detection will do the same. If we truly want to protect those who protect us, this is the battle we must now fight—with vigilance, intelligence, and better tools than ever before.

SEE COMPLETE FEATURE