Larry grew up in a three-room cold water flat in working class Bridgeport during the 1940s. The bathroom was out in the hall, and his family only had a bathtub in the kitchen. He enjoyed playing basketball because he then could go to the gym and treat himself to a hot shower. His parents were from Slovakia, and Larry was four years old before he could even speak English. Both his parents worked to try to make ends meet, and while growing up, Larry had 2 or 3 jobs at a time…from scrap metal to eventually fuel delivery. He went to public schools but didn’t graduate college until after his three children were born. He was just too busy, still, as time moved along, he opened his own fuel oil business, and gave it the old family Slovakian name, “Milo.” A few years ago, he traveled to Slovakia to find his old family, but most were gone. He explained that when the Nazis occupied Slovakia, they required each home to take in two soldiers. That broke his grandfather’s heart, and he soon died.

During the years as a businessman, Larry entered politics. He loves people, and people feel the same way about him. He has been reelected for seven terms, and regardless of the myeloma, he is not giving up that part of his life. His diagnosis came in 1998, and it was a complete surprise. He was actually in Vermont, chopping wood just days before he visited a cardiologist for a routine examination. The cardiac tests seemed fine, but his doctor did find some of those myeloma abnormalities in the exam, elevated white blood counts and anemia. His wife, Mildred, worked in the cardiologist’s office, and the doctor thought that Larry should best see an oncologist. He was suspicious of multiple myeloma, although he said that he had never seen a case since medical school. After seeing an oncologist and undergoing additional tests, Larry received the official diagnosis – multiple myeloma.

But Larry, like so many of us, had no idea of the impact of that disease, especially since he had few if any physical symptoms. He did research on it, and decided to travel to Arkansas and be treated by Dr. Bart Barlogie. He said, “I kept reading his name and I decided that he would be the best for me.” At first, there was some uncertainty how to treat Larry because his condition was in the early stages, but after looking at the tests, Dr. Barlogie prescribed regiments of chemo along with a double stem cell transplant – a very aggressive treatment, but with Larry, we are talking about a very aggressive guy. The procedure was not easy. At first he even said, “They are trying to kill me. I thought I was a dead person.”