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TAX Day – Ugh!!

I recently read where we were working Jan. 1 through June

30th of each year, just to pay all of our taxes. In Canada, add

another month or two. After that, you keep all you make. Prior

to that, 100% goes to the government in some form or fashion to pay for some kind of government

worker, work program, social program, defense, project, health care, common good, common

projects, etc. Whatever you want to call it, April 17th is TAX day; the deadline for ﬁling your federal

in-come taxes in the U.S.A. Canadians have to ﬁle by April 30th. Why April?

So, in celebration of this special time of year, let’s talk TAX relief. If you received last month’s letter

from me, you will recall our goal of trying to raise $25,000.00 for Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, the

areas #1 Not for Proﬁt Hospital for Young People. But – we need your help and I believe you can

beneﬁt from the TAX relief as well.

Just down the street from where I am typing this,

CHLA has a full house of kids ﬁghting for their

lives. For them and their parents’ taxes are not

“top of mind”, health is. Living is. Surviving is. As

you may have heard, Children’s Hospital is front

and center in the ﬁght against nasty diseases

that destroy or cut short the lives of Children.

Things like Cancer, Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma,

Leukemia, as well as leading the way in early

diagnosis of autism and miracle working around

spinal cord injuries. We are thankful to have

such a wonderful facility close by, doing such

great work to help heal and save young people.

In This Issue

— The Tax Man Cometh!

— A Tax Break Cometh!

— How Your Referrals Help the Kids

— And More!!

Vol 4, Issue 4

April 2018

The SoCal Home

More Than Real Estate News

INTERMIX SHOPPING EVENT SUPPORTING THE CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL LOS ANGELES

So even though we are trying to ﬁgure out how much we owe the tax man, many are simply hoping

they can be here to actually pay taxes. This is why we here at the Corey Chambers Team have

resolved to do what we can to help.

For every house we sell this year, we are donating a portion of our income to Children’s

Hospital Los Angeles. Our goal, again, is to raise $25,000 to help them in their quest to Heal,

Save, Cure and Comfort Children under their care.

This is where we need your help and how you can beneﬁt at the same time…

Charitable contributions are tax deductible to a point. Rather than give your money to the

government, you should consider making a donation to a charity. I believe it will somehow

come back to you, well beyond a simple tax deduction. A core value at our company is “the

size of the hole you give through is directly proportionate to the size of the hole you receive

through.”

Either way, your referrals are in good hands and help us

contribute to a good cause.

Life moves fast for some and we are eager to make the Home Selling and Buying experience

a smooth rewarding one. Over the last two decades of helping thousands of families sell their

home and/or buy another, we have met some wonderful, loving, caring people. People like

you! So, your referrals, those you know considering a move, that we help – you can rest

assured that not only will they get the award-winning service we are known for, but that a solid

portion of the income we receive from the transaction will go toward a very worthy cause.

Children’s Beneﬁt Art Auction at Coda Gallery

Any one you know considering buying or

selling a home, friends, neighbors,

associates or family members, call me

direct at 213-880-9910.

You and your referrals mean more than ever to my team

and me. As we move forward in this new season, please

know we are extremely thankful for you and your being a

special part of our business.

With all my appreciation.

Corey Chambers

Realty Source Inc

P.S. The story of this young person enclosed may cause you to look at your loved

ones differently. It did me. Check it out.

Your Referrals Really Do

Help the Kids…

IMPACTFUL REAL ESTATE NEWS

It’s easy to refer those you know

considering buying or selling a home.

Here are the Options Again:

Your Home Sold

GUARANTEED

or I'll Buy It*

Corey Chambers Team

200 N San Fernando Rd #119

Los Angeles, CA 90031

(213) 880-9910

coreychambers@yahoo.com

Visit us on the web at

www.ReferralsHelpKids.com

You can pass along our business

card to them. I have enclosed a

couple here for that purpose.

Call me direct or pass my number on:

213-880-9910.

IMPACTFUL REAL ESTATE NEWS

Why I Support Children's Hospital of Los Angeles

I grew up right here in Los Angeles. Born right nearby at St. Francis Hospital. I remember when I first

heard about a young person close to our family suffering from a nasty disease and getting treated for

that at Children's Hospital Los Angeles. It was then that I began to pay closer attention to the work

they do at that hospital. Since then, I have learned that it is a collection of hard working health care

professionals, most making their home right here in the Los Angeles area, all coming together for a

common cause. That cause is to help young people over come unfortunate health issues that life

sometimes throws our way. Being a Los Angeles area, California native, I take pride in supporting in any

way that I can the good work these people do at Children's. My team rallys around our annual goal of

raising money and donating portions of our income to help Children's in their quest to heal young people

when they need healing. My team and I are committed to providing outstanding results for buyers and

sellers referred to us by our past clients. I have discovered that Children's Hospital Los Angeles

shares similar commitments to their patients. And since their services survive on sponsorships and

donations we are happy to contribute and proud to support them.

Sincerely,

Corey Chambers

213-880-9910

(213) 880-9910

Like many parents, Bernard and Carlene had never heard of a rare disease called acute

flaccid myelitis (AFM) before the summer of 2016, when their 2-year-old daughter, Maipele,

started exhibiting some strange symptoms. Maipele, whose name is Polynesian for

“sweetheart,” had had a runny nose on May 21, which grew into a cough, followed a few

days later by a severe asthma attack. By the time Maipele reached a local emergency

department near the family’s home in Camarillo, she was in respiratory distress. After

doctors stabilized her, Maipele was airlifted to a hospital in Santa Barbara. A few days

later, back at home, Maipele “woke up as happy as can be,” recalls her father. She ran

through the house, laughing. It was then her parents noticed something odd: Maipele’s right arm seemed to dangle by

her side. They asked her to lift her arm. She couldn’t. “Her arm was like a dead weight,” says Carlene. “She wasn’t in

pain, but she could not move her arm at all.”

Viral Mystery

A rare, polio-like illness called acute ﬂaccid myelitis appeared on the national radar

in 2014 and may be on track to return this summer and fall. Here is one family’s

story, and a look at CHLA’s innovative, multidisciplinary approach.

By Candace Pearson

Innovative surgery

AFM is a polio-like illness that scientists suspect has a viral origin. In its worst-case scenario, the disease can leave its

targets partially or totally paralyzed in one or more limbs. CHLA takes a multidisciplinary approach to AFM, bringing

together experts from Infectious Diseases, Neurology, Rehabilitation Medicine, Pulmonology, Surgery and more.

Though there is no effective medical treatment for the disorder yet, CHLA plastic surgeon Mitchel Seruya, MD, has

developed a workaround, refining a novel nerve-transfer surgery—borrowing nerves from the ribs and diaphragm in a

kind of “electrical bypass”—to replace the deadened nerves in the affected extremity. CHLA is the only place in the

western U.S. to offer this surgery for AFM. “Too often these kids and their families are being told that nothing can be

done about AFM except give it more time,” says Seruya, director of CHLA’s Brachial Plexus and Peripheral Nerve

Center in the Division of Plastic and Maxillofacial Surgery, and assistant professor of Clinical Surgery at the Keck

School of Medicine of the University of Southern California (USC). “We are a flagship for this type of management for

AFM.” But before Seruya and Maipele would meet, Maipele’s parents began an odyssey in summer 2016 to discover

what was wrong with their youngest daughter. Her illness struck at a busy time for the young family. Carlene was eight

months pregnant with their third child, while Bernard, Petty Officer - First Class, at the Naval Base Ventura County Air

Operations at Point Mugu, was in advanced training. An air traffic controller, he is also assistant radar branch chief.

The worried parents returned to the local emergency room, where doctors diagnosed a dislocated shoulder, which can

cause limb weakness. Next, the family saw their pediatrician, who started Maipele on a course of physical therapy.

An unexpected diagnosis

By mid-June, with Maipele no better, their pediatrician referred the family to Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.

By then, Carlene had given birth to their son, Elijah. She stayed home to care for him and their oldest daughter,

Rochelle, then 7, while Bernard and Maipele made the hour-and-a-half trip from Camarillo to CHLA. Finally, the mystery

had a name—acute flaccid myelitis. It hit hard. “We had so many questions,” says Carlene. AFM, marked by sudden

onset of limb weakness or paralysis, first appeared on the national radar when 120 cases were reported the summer

and fall of 2014. Two years later, in 2016, 149 people were confirmed with the disease. In the off years of 2015 and

2017, cases went down. So far, no one—not scientists, not clinicians, not the Centers for Disease Control and

Prevention (CDC)—understands why. The prime suspect is a viral infection, as a number of viruses can cause AFM

symptoms. The CDC reports that the 2014 emergence of AFM coincided with a nationwide outbreak of enterovirus D68

(EV-D68), associated with severe respiratory illness. Now officials are concerned that if AFM’s two-year cycle holds

true, the number of cases may rise again in 2018. The illness primarily affects children.

An uncommon condition

CHLA neurologist Wendy Mitchell, MD, cautions parents to keep in mind that AFM is extremely rare. “Fewer than one in

1 million people are affected,” she notes. But it is something to be aware of, she adds, “especially since we don’t yet

know why it seems to increase every two years.” AFM targets the gray matter of the spinal cord, Mitchell explains,

“where motor neurons reside, and so it affects movement and muscle control.” If children haven’t recovered within

three months after diagnosis, they typically face persistent paralysis, says Seruya. Doctors have yet to identify any

factors that point to one child having a better recovery than another. “It’s a tough thing for families,” he adds, “because

we have so few answers.”

In April 2017, Maipele’s parents met with Seruya, who guided them through the surgery. In the ﬁrst stage, he would take

six nerves from Maipele’s ribs, transferring three to her arm to enable her to ﬂex her elbow and three to ﬂex her wrist

and ﬁngers. “With total paralysis, there are no other available donor nerves in the arm, as all are turned off,” he says.

“So we must go elsewhere—in this case the breathing nerves.” Because Maipele’s arm was totally paralyzed, she

would need a second surgery to transfer one of two phrenic nerves from her diaphragm. That would enable her to

extend her arm to the side.

Her parents were concerned about Maipele’s asthma. Would the removal of one phrenic nerve affect her breathing?

The nerves originate in the neck and pass through the heart and lungs to the diaphragm. Seruya assured them that all

previous AFM surgery patients had not shown any signs of compromised breathing or endurance. “It was a lot to take

in,” recalls Carlene. After some thought, they opted for the surgery. “We decided we wanted to give her the opportunity

to experience a life with all her extremities,” says Bernard. Ideally, Seruya prefers to complete the nerve transfer within

12 months of an AFM diagnosis to give the child a better chance at recovery. “The earlier you act, the better,” he says.

Maipele made it just under that deadline—11 months. In the early hours of May 2, 2017, she was wheeled into surgery.

The procedure took about nine hours. Maipele went home with a soft cast and a sling on her right arm.

On Aug. 10, 2017, CHLA surgeon Cathy Shin, MD, FCS, FAAP, harvested the phrenic nerve from the right side of

Maipele’s diaphragm. Then Seruya took over, transferring that nerve to her arm. Because her breathing nerves would

now do the job of movement, Maipele would need to learn how to deploy them. Working with CHLA physical and

occupational therapists, she practiced coughing to activate the ﬂexing nerves and exhaling a sharp breath to extend her

arm. “All of this tells her brain that her arm is still there,” says her mother.

Through October and November, CHLA doctors and Maipele’s parents saw signs of progress. She could rotate her

shoulder and ﬂex her elbow partway. By late December, 3 1/2-year-old Maipele could bend her elbow all the way (“as if

she’s doing a bicep curl,” says her dad), open and close her ﬁngers and even grip toys. She’s now also able to put her

clothes on by herself—very important for a toddler who loves playing dress-up. The grip strength in Maipele’s right

hand will always be less than it is in her left. But Seruya expects the next year or two to bring continued improvement.

“In a word, she’s resilient,” says her father. Maipele’s progress is being followed by the Brachial Plexus and Peripheral

Nerve Center, and she continues to see CHLA physical and occupational therapists, along with other team members in

Neurology, Pulmonology and Orthopaedics. “There aren’t enough ‘thank yous’ for everything everyone at CHLA has

done for us,” says Carlene. “We are very grateful.” “We’re excited to see what the future holds for Maipele,” says

Bernard, adding that they hope to be a resource for other families who face a diagnosis of AFM.

No one knows for certain if AFM cases will increase again this summer. Most symptoms of enterovirus D68, thought to

be one link behind AFM, resolve without the need for medical care. The best course of action: Be alert for viral

infections this summer and fall. Follow all recommended hygiene practices, such as handwashing protocols and cough

etiquette. If a child has symptoms of respiratory or gastrointestinal illness, followed by sudden weakness or decreased

movement in one or more extremities, visit an emergency room or see your doctor immediately.

Article courtesy Children's Hospital Los Angeles

How you can help:

Refer your friends, neighbors, associates or family members considering making a move:

www.ReferralsHelpKids.com or call Corey at 213-880-9910.

Guidance for parents

Deciding on the next step

Since 2014, Seruya has consulted on 16 cases of AFM at CHLA, and operated on eight—three children with total

paralysis who went through a two-stage surgery, and five with partial paralysis of the hand, elbow or shoulder who

underwent one surgery. The children ranged in age from 3 to 8 years old. In all cases, the procedure succeeded in

restoring some functionality to weakened limbs. After Mitchell and the Neurology team at CHLA confirmed Maipele’s

diagnosis, they prescribed a steroid medication that has been effective on other types of myelitis (inflammation of the

spine). Maipele embarked on a program of physical therapy at home in Ventura County and at CHLA. She made

progress in adapting to the use of one arm and learning how to rely on her left hand. But she still couldn’t lift her right

arm or hold anything in her palm. Off balance, she even broke the arm in a fall at home.