Santa Monica Mirror October 30, 2020

S A N TA M O N I C A

REFLECTING THE CONCERNS OF THE COMMUNITY

smmirror.com

October 30 – November 5, 2020 Volume LX, Issue 65

INSIDe OWNeR SAYS MISSING FReNCH BULLDOG SeeN WITH HOMeLeSS MAN THROUGHOUT SANTA MONICA PAGE 2

Santa Monica Police to Increase Presence Ahead of election Elevated police presence to begin October 30 department says

By Sam Catanzaro

Santa Monica police say they will increase their presence in preparation for any potential unrest surrounding the upcoming election.

According to Santa Monica Police Department (SMPD) Lieutenant Joseph Cortez, the department has no intelligence to indicate Santa Monica will be a place of unrest but said “we also know that things can change rapidly and are actively monitoring the situation.”

The SMPD says that beginning October 30, Santa Monica will see an elevated police presence throughout the city.

“Over the last several weeks, the Santa Monica Police Department has been working with our local and regional partners in preparation for any unrest surrounding the election,” Cortez said. “Our visibility should not cause alarm and is dedicated to swiftly intercede with any type of criminal activity.”

According to police, the City of Santa Monica and the SMPD have plans in place that include “a robust staffing model” and have coordinated with the Office of Emergency Management to have an activation plan for the entire City. The Department could not immediately be reached for more information surrounding these plans.

The announcement by the SMPD comes days after the City of Beverly Hills announced they will be shutting down Rodeo Drive on election day saying it is “planning for the worst.”

Photo: Margaret Gazey (Facebook)

Santa Monica police form a barricade amid May 31 protests.

In addition, the announcement comes on new Chief Jacqueline Seabrooks’ first day.

Seabrooks’–who formally served as chief from 2012-2017–takes over for Cynthia Renaud, who retired amidst criticism surround the SMPD’s response to the civil unrest and looting of May 31.

In the events of May 31–in which looters

took advantage of a peaceful protest against the police killing of George Floyd– 350 businesses reported some loss due to criminal activity. The Department says it has received questions about reinforcing storefronts ahead of the election but is not taking any stance on the practice.

“As a Police Department, we cannot tell

business what to do when it comes to boarding up. However, we understand the need to feel secure and we respect your decisions on how to handle your day to day operations. If you choose to board up your business or want to have the materials ready to do so, we support you,” Cortez said.

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October 30 – November 5, 2020

Owner Says Missing French Bulldog Seen With Homeless Man Throughout Santa Monica Social media effort to find missing French Bulldog ‘Melo’

By Sam Catanzaro

The owners of a missing French Bulldog say over a dozen people have told them they have seen the puppy throughout Santa Monica with a homeless man.

The missing dog’s name is Melo who went missing on September 26 when he was 10-months-old and around 30 pounds wearing a purprle harness,. According to a flyer circulating around social media offering a reward for the puppy, Melo has a unique white star patch on his chest.

A social media account called @ BringMeloHome on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter has been set up to aid in locating Melo.

According to a recent post, Melo has been seen with the same man, often near the Santa Monica Pier.

“I have 13+ witnesses who saw this ‘homeless’ guy with the black French Bulldog that’s likely Melo in Santa Monica. This guy has been seen near the pier 5 different times by 7 witnesses. Please share and help me locate this guy,” reads the post from owner Yuki.

The post goes onto describe the man as possibly named Jay or Jefferey, between.

5’8-5’10, “big/chubby”, tanned, Caucasian or possibly Hispanic, some facial hair, likely short hair or bald wearing a dirty black top, pants and a hat.

The following are locations Melo has been seen, according to the post.

• Santa Monica Boulevard and 6th Street (9/27-10/1) during the day • Bike path south of the Pier between 6:30-7 am (the week of 9/27) • Pico Boulevard and Centinela Avenue near the 10 Freeway entrance (10/2-10/5) during the day.

• Pico Boulevard around 29th Street towards Centinela Avenue (10/2-10-5) during the day • Broadway Avenue and 6th Street (around 10/10 about 2 pm) • Santa Monica Pier (10/12) He was seen twice this day by 3 witnesses. Between 12-5 pm and 7-8 pm.

• 17th Street and Delaware Avenue (10/19 8:35 pm) • Chess Park near the pier (10/17 11:30 am) • Santa Monica Pier (10/19 or 20 during the day) • Palisades Park (10/25 6 pm) • The flyer asks people to call owner Yuki immediately with any sightings at (310) 804-2578.

Photos: Facebook

Melo, a missing French Bulldog puppy.

The Coalition of Santa Monica City Employees proudly endorse and ask for your vote for

Ana Maria Jara

Terry O'Day

Gleam Davis

Kristin McCowan

Ted Winterer

COUNCILMEMBER 35 year Pico Neighborhood renter

MAYOR PRO TEMPORE 22 Year Pico Neighborhood resident

COUNCILMEMBER 34 year Santa Monica resident

COUNCILMEMBER Third generation Santa Monican

COUNCILMEMBER 28 year Santa Monica resident

committed to:

committed to:

committed to:

committed to:

committed to:

The City's Cradle to Career initiative

Preserving and creating affordable housing

Public Safety

Protecting the City’s partnership with Santa Monica schools – funding playgrounds and classrooms

Promoting a safer and more sustainable Santa Monica that is pedestrian, bike and micro mobility-friendly

Making Santa Monica a better place for young families - regardless of socio-economic status.

Steering our city through a recovery from the economic and social impacts of the COVID-19 virus.

Expanding educational opportunities

Providing an independent voice and home grown perspective to council

Addressing our most important challenge: further reducing homelessness, down 8% last year.

Protecting vulnerable youth

Converting Big Blue Bus to zero emission / zero carbon

Ensuring all City decisions support social justice and equity

Paid for by Coalition of Santa Monica City Employees PAC. 1223 Wilshire Blvd., #1423, Santa Monica CA 90403-5400.

Not authorized by a candidate or a committee controlled by a candidate.

Guiding our community through recovery from the COVID-19 Crisis and answering the outcry for racial justice

Building on last year’s 16% decrease in crime while reforming our police department to find cost savings and to assure racial justice.

October 30 – November 5, 2020

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October 30 – November 5, 2020

OPINION

“The Opportunity to Re-unite the Residents with their City” SMa.r.t.

Santa Monica Architects for a Responsible Tomorrow

As election season draws to a close, we are all deciding on how to best to provide for our city’s, and our families, future.

Our Expectations for a Livable City Two factors have created the residents’ unprecedented concern about our future. What should we as residents expect from our city?

As Livablecities.org describes it, “The essential character of the city, “its urban character,” evolves through a confrontation of the public and private domains; a constant exchange, a separation and coming together of these two domains.

Only when inhabitants live in both domains, can the city meet its full potential for enhancing the life of each, and serve its social and cultural functions.”

Applying this definition of a successful city to Santa Monica over the past 20 years of the residents’ lived experience, it’s clear that the instances of the essential synergistic coming

SMa.r.t., see page 5

Photo: Sam Catanzaro.

“This election, unlike all previous elections, has provided the residents with a clear choice in the determination of our future quality of life. In may ways, it is our last chance to significantly influence the imminent major decisions that will impact our lives for decades to come,” writes SMart in their latest column.

As a strong and independent professional within Emergency Management, I care deeply about our residents. Your safety and well-being will be a top priority!

My Pledge To You:

VOTE NOV 3

• Protect residents from crime • Create a plan to assist the homeless • Protect our vulnerable renters • Support responsible development • Make parks safe for all to enjoy • Get the city’s budget back on track • Represent residents, NOT special interests

IT’S TIME FOR CHANGE IN SANTA MONICA!

www.christineparra.com

“If elected, I will bring to the City Council a commitment to residents that goes beyond lip service.”

Paid for by Christine Parra for Santa Monica City Council 2020. FPPC ID-1430482

October 30 – November 5, 2020

“SMa.r.t.”, From page 4 together of the public and private domains has been in inexorable decline. Compounding this decline at every step has been the complete absence of clarity about what the future holds.

How and why the residents anticipate the future of the city When the future outlook is essentially a fog, the residents default back to using the past as a guide as to what to expect going forward.

Unless real change is made, the only outcome that trendline provides here in Santa Monica is continued deterioration in the residents’ quality of life.

One key benefit of the uninterrupted control of the city’s direction under one political group is the uncontested link between cause and effect. The residents have entrusted to the incumbent group complete decisionmaking authority on every aspect of the city’s development, both culturally and physically.

The result has been deep dissatisfaction with the outcomes of both. Despite all the new housing construction in the city, the city has experienced a net decline in population over the last three years according to the CA Department of Finance. The residents are voting with their feet to become ex-residents.

This is a key marker of a city in decline.

Residents exclusion from decisions impacting their lived experience This election, unlike all previous elections, has provided the residents with a clear choice in the determination of our future quality of life. In may ways, it is our last chance to significantly influence the imminent major decisions that will impact our lives for decades to come.

Without making their case to, or asking for the consent of, the residents for the decisions that most directly impact their lived reality for decades to come, the incumbents have embraced an accelerated and unbridled outof-scale commercial and radical residential development agenda that will permanently transform Santa Monica as we know it.

If the potential outcomes of this agenda are such a good thing for the residents, the incumbents should have been eager to share their vision with, and obtain the consent of, the residents. The fact this is being organized under the radar of the average resident, in ways that are irreversible once implemented, adds a questionable ethical dimension to what is already a set of outcomes that have been demonstrated to be hostile to the resident’s quality of life.

Choices for change in the city’s trajectory and the residents’ connection with their city The choice we are making in this election is to create a new direction that is driven by, and laser focused on, the re-establishment of the residents’ essential connection to their public spaces, their downtown, essential commercial

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resources, and their neighborhoods.

• To start, the Slate is committed to transparent government.

That means supporting district elections, ensuring City Staff accountability, and an end to the cycle of Council members appointing their successors.

• Financial accountability, responsibility and transparency. Financial management would be re-oriented to active management of the city’s core problem – out of control spending and mismanagement of pension risk. All city operations will be reviewed for cost saving opportunities while also enhancing quality of services. Real Financial accountability and transparency will include enhanced and real resident oversight and advisory participation in budget and fiscal sustainability.

• Crime will no longer be something to manage to the minimum extent necessary to keep residents from organized opposition. It will be based on proactive objectives measures to reunite the residents and their families with their public spaces.

• Responsible community-based and scaled development will ensure that the residents have a central role in deciding on the character of what actually gets approved, especially as over 30 additional developments are in the planning stages with four high rises planned from Ocean Avenue to 5th Street.

• Use of true sustainability metrics for water and power as real guides to development scope and city policy.

• Maintaining and improving affordable housing rather than using that term to justify gentrification. Rent control is a life-saver – it will be protected as enshrined in the City Charter.

• Residents’ cultural resources to receive the highest budgetary priority rather than be viewed as a cost to be minimized. Our senior programs, swim centers and parks and programs will be reviewed and enhanced.

• Creating and enacting policies to encourage a robust and diverse commercial environment scaled to the city and focused on residents will help reunite the city with the residents and help diversify revenue risk It is not an exaggeration to say that we have a once in a lifetime choice. Choosing the status quo will result in irreversible decisions that will, over time, complete the divorce of the residents to their public spaces and commercial services. Rather than encouraging the residents to vote with their feet, let’s hope they vote for positive and lasting change and elect the Slate of Eight.

Marc L. Verville for SMa.r.t. (Santa Monica Architects for a Responsible Tomorrow) Thane Roberts, Architect, Robert H. Taylor AIA, Ron Goldman FAIA, Architect, Dan Jansenson, Architect, Building and Fire-Life Safety Commission, Samuel Tolkin Architect, Marc L. Verville, CPA (inactive).

For previous articles see www.santamonicaarch.wordpress.com/writings

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October 30 – November 5, 2020

By Staff Writer Santa Monica and Westside residents walked throughout the city’s neighborhoods, parks and trails, waving flags and sporting purple outfits to raise awareness and funds in the fight against Alzheimer’s through the Alzheimer’s Association Walk to End Alzheimer’s.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, participants were unable to walk together, in one location as they have in the past.

Instead, they walked as individuals and small groups across the area, many coming up with creative ways to raise awareness within their neighborhoods, such as dressing their dogs in purple and including them in the celebration.

After walking, participants were able to view a drive-by Promise Flower Garden located at the Santa Monica Box ‘N Burn. Each flower in the garden carried a specific significance: Purple: I lost someone to Alzheimer’s or another dementia Yellow: I am a caregiver for someone with Alzheimer’s or another dementia Orange: I envision a world without Alzheimer’s or another dementia

Blue: I am a person living with Alzheimer’s or another dementia “It’s unfortunate that we cannot meet as a group this year,” said Margaret Barron, executive director of the Alzheimer’s Association California Southland. “However, the important thing is that we are still walking, on the same day and with the same relentless dedication. We will be walking in different locations at the same time, with the same goal: to find prevention, treatment and a cure for Alzheimer’s.”

The walk began with an online opening ceremony, emceed by ABC7’s Jovana Lara.

Funds raised at the Alzheimer’s Association Walk to End Alzheimer’s support Alzheimer’s care, support, research and advocacy. Monies raised also fund the Alzheimer’s Association 24/7 Helpline (800.272.3900), available in over 200 languages to answer questions and provide support.More than 5 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s disease – the sixth-leading cause of death in the United States. Additionally, more than 16 million family members and friends provide care to people living with Alzheimer’s and other dementias.

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October 30 – November 5, 2020

Covid Dating – The New Normal?

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I’ve been single for a little more than 3 months. The good thing about Covid is my husband and I were able to be with each other for endless hours, days and months, under quarantine. We finally decided, after going back and forth for many years, that we were not able to live together and would be better friends.

I moved into an amazing vintage apartment, and I realized that for the first time in my life, I was living alone. No husbands, no roommates, no parents. Wow. I was a little scared, but more excited. Space had been created for my new life.

With that in mind, I recently joined an online dating service. Right away, I received some likes and waves. I followed up with a few of them. No connection. Or, all they wanted to do was text. To me, it’s a waste of time.

A few weeks ago, I connected with a guy who looked great on paper. Well traveled, educated, good looking, lived close enough to me. After a few e-mails, we agreed to meet.

But wait, how do we do this now, with Covid?

I made reservations at a restaurant that had outside seating, waiters with the clear plastic helmets and gloves, appropriately spaced tables. I wanted to meet him there, but he insisted he pick me up. Nice. Old-school guy. As long as he wasn’t an ax murderer, it was cool.

He rang my doorbell. I opened the door.

There stood a guy much taller and older than I expected. Damn those dating app shots! He also dressed a little frumpy, wore eyeglasses like my dad would wear and shuffled in, large surgical mask covering the rest of the face that

the glasses did not.

I have been on a few dates from dating apps before. Usually you would shake hands. Or a short hello hug. This one was awkward. I showed him around my place, and then went to grab my handbag and mask. I put the mask on as we walked to his car. My mask matched my outfit.

We got to the restaurant, sat down and were served a glass of water. I took my mask off to drink my water. He kept his mask on. In fact, I think he was quite nervous about the whole mask thing. I asked him if he was going to take his mask off. He said when the meal came he would. Awkward. Again.

The meal came. He finally took off his mask.

Mind you, I understand the need for masks, but when you are on a date, it’s so weird. I couldn’t hear him through the mask, either.

It’s hard enough to get to know someone, even without a mask.

Between balancing the awkwardness of a first date and Covid safety, I was beginning to think that dating during Covid was not worth it. We finished our dinner, and left soon afterward, putting those damn masks on again. I jumped into his car, and we drove to my place. He walked me to my door, and followed me in.

I stood there, with my mask on, he with his mask on, standing 6 feet apart from me and just stared. Now what? No hugs. No handshakes. No kisses. I took my elbow and touched his elbow and said “thank you, I had a great time,” and backed him out my door.

If this was the new normal, I wanted no part of it.

The worst of all? He insisted we split the check, even though he bragged about how successful he was during the dinner. Eew. You don’t need to wear a mask to be a cheapshit.

Maybe I should just stick to texting. It’s safer, cheaper, and easier to communicate.

Wish me luck! I am going to need it…

October 30 – November 5, 2020

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Rated R 95 Minutes Released October 23rd on Amazon Prime

FILM ReVIeW: “BORAT SUBSEQUENT MOVIEFILM”

BEHIND THE SCREEN

By Kathryn Whitney Boole Sacha Baron Cohen’s goal is to shock his carefully chosen “victims” or subjects, into unwittingly dropping their guard to display their basest behaviors. He convincingly adopts the guise of the “innocent,” one who ostensibly has no clue about what is going on, with an unbiased open mind ready to soak up every piece of news that’s imparted to him. His alter ego in this movie is “Borat,” a hapless peasant from Kazakhstan, whose 2006 film was so popular that he now has the means to revive the fortunes of his nation by offering a gift to the all-powerful Trump administration. After a sudden change of plan, it is decided that the gift will be his teenage daughter “Tutar” (which means “daughter” in Estonian) and she will be gifted to Vice President Michael Pence.

Thus begins a hilarious and disturbing journey.

The Borat films are both funny and frightening. Cohen’s MO is to mirror outrageously evil human behavior as if it is mundane and trick those around him into accepting it, on film. This current iteration of Borat’s escapades does not carry the shock value of the first movie, if you’ve seen it,

simply because you’ve witnessed his tactics before. Some of the scenes carry on a bit long.

However there is nothing else in cinema like a Borat movie, and this one is graced with the hilarious, exuberant antics of young Bulgarian actress Maria Bakalova.

Bakalova won the role of “Tutar” out of 600 actresses who auditioned, by pulling a “Borat.”

For her audition, she posed as a journalist and persuaded unsuspecting subjects to open up to her. She’s proud of her background and concerned with world social issues – protests in her own country and Black Lives Matter.

Cohen calls her “one of the most courageous actors in history.”

Cohen grew up in a London suburb and studied History at Cambridge. He formed a breakdancing group as a teen and worked as a model and TV host before he discovered his true talent as chameleonic master of disguise as hip presenter “Ali G” for British TV. Da Ali G Show (2000-2004) became a hit in the US. His first Borat movie won a Golden Globe and an Oscar nomination in 2007.

Language has a role in the irony of this movie as well. Borat speaks Hebrew throughout the film. Tutar speaks Bulgarian. The Kazakhstani peasants speak Romanian. However all seem to communicate with one another just fine. Since a good part of the American population has not traveled outside of our country, the filmmakers

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decided that they probably would not recognize that different languages were being spoken.

A n o t h e r observation that I often make is that we assign too much weight to the actual words of a conversation, since a great percentage of communication is in body language and the inflections of the voice.

In our complicated world, chaos follows Borat’s footsteps wherever he goes. He is so good at believing his own pure character that others buy into it. He tricks the unsuspecting into showing their true colors. He lets them expose their own hypocrisy, ignorance and prejudice. On the higher end, you will find some of the characters try to adapt to the situation and make the best of it, sometimes offering assistance. At the lower level you will witness very disturbing behavior. It is eye opening and horrifying to watch as people misguided by propaganda and conspiracy

hype interact with someone they believe is of their own mindset.

One of the players was let in on the joke, after her scene was shot. ]Cohen informed Holocaust survivor Judith Dim Evans that he is the polar opposite of the character he played in her scene, being Jewish himself. She passed away at age 88 after the shoot, and the film is dedicated to her.

Kathryn Whitney Boole has spent most of her life in the entertainment industry, which has been the backdrop for remarkable adventures with extraordinary people. She is a Talent Manager with Studio Talent Group in Santa Monica. kboole@gmail.com.

Mario, a fresh vision for safety, sustainability, and economic stewardship

Change is Needed Now! Vote for a new councilperson unencumbered by special interests, willing to make a better and more inclusive Santa Monica!

I will work to improve our quality of life!

• Help to reduce crime ensuring the safety for all citizens • Increase affordable housing, and protect rent control • Improve resident services by overhauling financial management • Resist developments exceeding our resource capacities • Expand business development, and job creation

Mario4council.com Paid for by Mario Fonda-Bonardi for City Council 2020. FPPC ID-1430878.

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October 30 – November 5, 2020

Hyperthermia Cancer Institute: The Best Cancer Treatment You’ve Never Heard Of Santa Monica-based cancer institute uses FDA-approved treatment to help patients

By Sam Catanzaro

“THE BEST CANCER TREATMENT YOU’VE NEVER HEARD OF” is right here in Santa Monica at Hyperthermia Cancer Institute (HCI). Hyperthermia is an FDAapproved treatment designed to improve the effectiveness of chemotherapy or radiation therapy. Hyperthermia is a gentle therapy with little to no side effects, and no known adverse effects on normal tissue. HCI attracts patients from across the country for this treatment, and the treatment is covered partially or completely by most forms of insurance.

Hyperthermia is a non-invasive procedure, it uses ultrasound delivered from the outside of the body. Hyperthermia can deliver heat as deep as 10 centimeters in addition to the thickness of fat. So the heat can reach tumors that are at the surface, as well as those that are quite deep in the body. Tumors are heated to up to 109o F for 45 minutes. The heat increases blood flow to the tumor which does three things. It brings more chemotherapy inside the tumor, it brings oxygen that helps radiation therapy work better, and it induces your own body’s immune system to attack the cancer.

The Medical Director at HCI is Dr. Joseph J. Pinzone, an internist and endocrinologist by training, who has been involved in NIHfunded molecular cancer research as well as clinical cancer research for many years.

While Dr. Pinzone learned about this form of heat therapy when in residency in the early 1990s, it was not until more recently that he understood how powerful the practice could be, particularly when added to other therapies.

“As I understood that, I realized this is SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME Case No. 20TRCP00241 Superior Court of California, county of Los Angeles 825 Maple Ave | Torrance, CA 90503 Petition of: Anh Minh Nguyen, by and through Kien Trung Nguyen and Thao Thi Phuong Tran for change of name.

ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME To all interested persons: Kien Trung Nguyen and Thao Thi Phuong Tran Petitioner: filed a petition with this court for a decree changing names as follows: a. Anh Minh Nguyen to Bella Minh-Anh Nguyen The court orders that all persons interested in this matter appear before this court at the hearing indicated below to show cause, if any, why the petition for change of name should not be granted. Any person objecting to the name changes described above must file a written objection that includes the reasons for the objection at least two court days before the matter is scheduled to be heard and must appear at the hearing to show cause why the petition should not be granted. If no written objection is timely filed, the court may grant the petition without a hearing.

NOTICE OF HEARING: Date: 12/11/2020 | Time: 8:30AM | Dept: M Room: A copy of this ORDER to SHOW CAUSE shall be published at least once a week for four successive weeks prior to the date set for hearing on the petition in the following newspaper of general circulation, printed in this county: SANTA MONICA MIRROR | Dated: OCT 15, 2020 Judge DEIRDRE HILL Published: 10/23/2020, 10/30/2020, 11/06/2020, and 11/13/2020

something that we have to get out there. It hadn’t really caught on previously in this country, but because I have the ability to both understand cancer at a molecular level and to communicate the potential benefits of cancer therapy, I thought it would be an excellent opportunity for me to use my skills to establish this as a cancer therapy that everyone could take advantage of,” Dr. Pinzone said.

HCI uses the Sonotherm 1000, a device that is FDA-approved to treat all solid tumors in combination with chemotherapy or radiation therapy. According to Dr. Pinzone, any place you can have an ultrasound done in your body, the Sonotherm 1000 can be used to treat cancer.

“The particular device that we use, and the particular technology that we use here at HCI, has been validated by studies that have been presented to the FDA and the FDA has found them to be effective and safe. And so specifically, we have the backing of the FDA in terms of our ability to represent that we have effectiveness and we have a good safety profile,” Dr. Pinzone said.

“Somewhere between 106o-109o seems to be a magic window where a variety of changes

Photos: Courtesy Hyperthermia Cancer Institute

Medical Director at HCI is Dr. Joseph J. Pinzone.

take place in that tumor,” Dr. Pinzone said.

“It is a little higher than a fever and a little cooler than the hottest California day. We heat the tumor for approximately 45 minutes at that temperature. What that does is increase the blood flow to the tumor.”

This heating process, Dr. Pinzone says, helps fight tumors in three ways.

First, if you are on chemotherapy or any systemic therapy, hyperthermia increases the blood flow to the tumor which allows better access of that therapy to the tumor, particularly to the central portion of the tumor where the blood vessels are often poorly formed. The increased blood flow delivers oxygen to the tumor, and if you are receiving radiation, the radiation works much better in a welloxygenated environment, Dr. Pinzone says.

Second, many traditional cytotoxic chemotherapy agents and radiation therapy damage the DNA of the tumor. This targets that tumor cell for destruction. Hyperthermia has the effect of slowing the enzymes that repair the DNA that is damaged by the chemotherapy

According to Dr. Joseph J. Pinzone, hyperthermia improves the effectiveness of chemotherapy or radiation therapy.

or radiation therapy. “This is really critical.

We don’t want that DNA repaired, we want it to stay damaged because that targets the cells that have the damaged DNA for destruction and removal. So that is actually how many types of chemotherapy and radiation therapy work,” Dr. Pinzone said.

Third, according to Dr. Pinzone, hyperthermia stimulates an immune response.

“The great thing about our technology is there are no known adverse effects on normal tissue.

When we heat to 109o F, we stimulate the release of what are called heat shock proteins.

The same proteins that get released when you have a fever and their job is to alert the immune system to get rid of anything that is foreign,” Dr. Pinzone said. In addition to releasing the heat shock proteins that stimulate the cells of the immune system, the therapy also directly disrupts the cells of the tumor. “We release all the mutated proteins that are inside of that tumor, and those to our body look like foreign invaders. So when you combine the stimulated immune cells with the specific parts of the tumor that look foreign, you get an immune reaction to that tumor,” Dr. Pinzone said.

“There are many studies that have demonstrated a substantial increase in the response rate to chemotherapy when you heart a tumor compared to just giving chemotherapy alone. Some studies even demonstrate and increase in overall survival when you treat with hyperthermia plus chemotherapy compared to chemotherapy alone,” Dr. Pinzone said.

Dr. Pinzone added that there are similar improved results with heat added radiation therapy. Studies demonstrate that in various tumor types that when hyperthermia is provided along with radiation therapy, there is a better response rate of the radiation.

“The tumor shrinks more than if you provide

radiation alone, and in some cases, you can actually improve survival in patients who receive hyperthermia plus radiation, compared to radiation alone,” Dr. Pinzone said.

A session at HCI takes either one or two hours, depending on how many sites are treated, often six days a week. Dr. Pinzone notes that this takes a commitment from patients, but the frequency of sessions contains invaluable benefits. However, as stated previously, hyperthermia is extremely gentle and non-invasive. “In fact,” says Dr. Pinzone, “our patients often mediate or sleep during therapy.”

“Our patients become like family to us,” Dr. Pinzone said. “We have an environment that is extremely welcoming. There is zero pressure to do anything in particular and we provide as much support as we can. We have many patients from out of town. We often help them with travel and with housing to both coordinate it and, in some cases, to help offset the cost through various foundations. The bottom line is that we go the extra mile for our patients. We get to know them better than almost any other provider has an opportunity to get to know them, and we advocate for them in ways that I have never seen in any other environment I have ever worked in.”

To find out more about whether hyperthermia can help you, call HCI at 888-580-5900 or visit their website at hcioncology.com.

“Patients with cancer today are more educated and advocate more for themselves and their family members than ever. That is one of the reasons we have been so successful at helping people, because they are able to find us either through their healthcare provider or on their own. We offer a unique environment and treatment option that they can’t find anywhere else and that gives people hope,” Dr. Pinzone said.

October 30 – November 5, 2020

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Santa Monica School Board Approves Purchases $21 Million Building Santa Monica Malibu School Board votes 6-1 to purchase office building at 1717 4th Street By toi CreeL

The Santa Monica Malibu Unified School District will be getting new headquarters soon after officials approved the purchase of a $21 million office building.

At an October 15 meeting, the Santa Monica Malibu School Board officially voted to approve the purchase of the $21 million DoubleTree office building on 1717 4th Street.

The six to one to voted moved forward a plan to make the building, which is on property own by the school district, the new district headquarters.

In justifying the purchase, the school board said it will provide more unity as with the new building, all-district departments will be held in the same building right across from the Santa Monica High School campus.

Before members made a decision to purchase

the building, it was under closed discussion for nearly a year. The decision to purchase was delayed multiple times due to disagreements surrounding the purchase, complications from COVID-19 and economic setbacks.

As far as who will be financing the building, Certificates of Participation and Redevelopment Agency funding will take over the brunt of the cost to avoid tapping into the General Fund.

Current District headquarters at 1651 16th Street will be leased commercially to generate more revenue.

The purchase did not come without scrutiny with many in the community questioning the move of buying a multi-million dollar building during a pandemic and whether or not it was appropriate— especially without input from the public.

The only board member to vote against the purchase was Oscar de la Torre, currently running for a seat on Santa Monica City Council, who pressed for a two-week delay on the vote and also for more discussion on other uses for the 16th street property besides commercial real estate.

“No one has said we need this; it’s almost like a want and we’ve got to respect the taxpayers,” de la Torre said.

Other board members, including Craig

Foster, disagreed with de la Torre in approving the purchase.

“It’s an opportunity and this is the last chance we’re going to get to do this. When somebody else buys this building it’s gone,

and if we need to move headquarters, who knows where that’s going to be or when that’s going to be. It can’t possibly be as convenient as this, which is actually on land we own on the Samohi campus,” Foster said.

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