Meet Maximus Derba

A Little About Max

Maximus Derba was born in Massachusetts on February 18th, 2008. At 2 years old, he relocated with his family to sunny Southwest Florida.

In Florida, he took full advantage of being a typical fun-loving kid. Outspoken and personable, he could always be found surrounded by old friends or making new ones.

It was clear to anyone who had the pleasure of meeting Max that he was one of the most vibrant, funny, upbeat, and playful kids they would likely ever meet.

Max's Diagnosis

On July 22nd, 2016, Max was taken to Golisano Children's Hospital to treat some general symptoms, including a fever, rash, constipation, fatigue, and more.

At first, the doctors believed his symptoms might be caused by some sort of blockage; however, they struggled to explain his extremely high blood pressure, a very uncommon symptom for someone his age.

After running some additional tests, his doctors soon discovered a mass the size of a baseball in his abdomen. They determined this mass would most likely be diagnosed as Wilm's or Neuroblastoma.

Transfer to Boston Children's Hospital

With this information, Max's family made the decision to transfer Max to Boston Children's Hospital to be closer to family and receive some of the best care in the world. Max and his family arrived in Boston on July 25th.

Within 24 hours, Max was in surgery for a biopsy, quickly followed by a bone marrow test and a scan that specializes in lighting up active neuroblastoma cells in the body. By the end of the week, Max's team of doctors met with his family to deliver the results and the plan of attack.

Max, The Fighter

Maximus was diagnosed with High Risk Stage 4 Neuroblastoma and immediately began the fight for his life.

For 8 agonizing months filled with surgeries, highly toxic chemo, stem cell transplants, trips back and forth from the ICU floor, and complications upon complications, Maximus fought with the will of a thousand warriors.

Max endured these treatments while he was hundreds of miles away from his home, his brother, his friends, and school. He only managed a handful of brief opportunities to break out of the confines of his hospital room to catch a movie or get some fresh air.

His difficult treatments came with the price of horrific side effects, most notably including mucositis, which can only closely be described as swallowing hot coals and having them burn their way from your mouth, down your esophagus, through your digestive tract, and through your body.

Despite the difficulty, Max took all of this in stride and was always quick to try to make you laugh or smile, even in his darkest moments.

Max fought harder than anyone could have imagined, but in the end, his body could not keep up with the strength of his will.

On March 6th, 2017, Maximus Robert Derba quietly passed away in the arms of his parents, not even 3 weeks after his 9th birthday.