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TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — A mother and son duo is doing what they can to help patients at Moffitt Cancer Center.
On top of providing comfort, they also help raise awareness for autism. Â
Every Friday, a pianist greets the patients at the Richard M. Schulze Family Foundation Outpatient Center with his music. Milosz Gasior has been playing in the Moffitt lobby for almost a year.
The musician was diagnosed with autism when he was a toddler and is only able to speak through his music.
“This is already something that saved him from being lonely, from being not accepted. This, being here, is an example of inclusion and there’s nothing that I would want more than my son to be included, be accepted, be appreciated,” said Bozena Gasior.
His mother, Bozena Gasior, said she interacts with the patients to tell them her son’s story.
“When patients tell me ‘you are such an inspiration,’ it’s so humbling, because I can only imagine what they can go through with their diagnosis,” she said.
Jessica Halferty is with the Arts and Medicine Program, where they use arts and music to help patients. She said Milosz’s music helps comfort those receiving treatments.
“It kind of transforms the space, takes away that kind of hospital feel, that daunting feeling that a lot of these people might be feeling,” Halferty said.
The expert said his music is something that exemplifies what their program is all about.
“It just allows for them to take a breath and maybe hear some of the songs that he is playing, they’re familiar with that, it brings that comfort back to them,” she said.
Milosz first sat down at a piano when he was 7 and a half. Now, at 22, his music floats through the hallways of the Cancer Center.
“I have heard this many times from the patients, they said, ‘You know, I forgot where I was. When I was here, I closed my eyes and I truly forgot where I was’,” said his mother.
Both Milosz and Bozena are hoping to help each patient through their cancer diagnosis. Bozena said on top of helping make patient’s journeys a little bit easier, she wants to help parents whose children are living with autism.
Gasior wrote a book about her son, called I Heard the Light, which she said describes a mother’s story of her son’s journey through autism to self-expression.
