#BraveLikeMax
In Memory of Max Akerson
11/23/2008 - 11/26/2024
Diagnosis: Pediatric Hepatocellular Carcinoma (pediHCC)
Location: Minnesota
The Play For Max Foundation has been made in Max’s honor. Follow the Play For Max Foundation on Instagram.
Published on September 16th, 2025
From a young age, Max found joy in sports, exercise and the camaraderie of being on a team. He’d try anything and everything that involved movement. He’d gather the neighbor kids together for a kickball game or street hockey. He’d run a Thanksgiving 5K on short notice. He’d try learning a new technique in pickleball or whiffle ball. Playing a game was not only a way for Max to have fun, but it shaped his character, resilience and resolve.
“We teased him that he was going to be a gym teacher because he couldn’t pick a single sport that he loved. He wanted to do it all.”
In the fall of 2021, at 13 years old, Max was busy with both hockey and football. He started to lose weight, catch fevers and complain of pain under his rib cage. Unsure if it was his high activity level, puberty, or something worse, his parents brought him to urgent care. His non-specific symptoms made it difficult to diagnose the issue.
In January 2022, his fevers started again and after a visit to the ER with an ultrasound and CT scan, they found a tumor on his liver. The tumor was so enlarged and inflamed that it was bleeding and causing the pain under Max’s rib cage. Weeks later, the tumor biopsy came back as stage four Pediatric Hepatocellular carcinoma (pediHCC), a rare childhood liver cancer.
Within a few weeks, Max had a portacath placed for administration of an aggressive chemotherapy treatment and a surgery scheduled to remove the tumor. Max’s side effects were difficult to manage. The harsh chemo made him lose his hair and he was really nauseous.
“I think that was the biggest thing that worried him. Losing his hair was that identifier out in public that he was sick and he hated that reminder.”
After surgery and six total rounds of chemotherapy, he recovered really well and within a week of port removal he was back playing soccer, lacrosse and hockey.
Max’s follow up scans in September and October suggested there were still cancer cells in the tumor bed. He had surgeries in the winter of 2022 to remove half of his liver with hopes of getting clearer margins. The surgeries sidelined him from hockey for eight weeks before he could get back to playing. Max counted down every single day.
Sports were everything to Max. When he couldn’t play it was devastating to him. He luckily could receive chemo as outpatient treatments every couple weeks which meant playing sports was still manageable. Max’s love for athletics pushed him through treatment. He loved his teammates. Even if he was benched after a surgery, he attended practice because he wanted to show up and be with the team.
Max and his family travelled to Cincinnati in 2023 for a specialized surgery called HIPEC (hyperthermia intraperitoneal chemotherapy) in which they combine surgical tumor removal and chemotherapy. The surgery started with removing the cancer cells and then followed with a warm chemo bath in his abdominal cavity for 90 minutes.
“They found a lot of cells and took those out, which was amazing. He did really well through the surgery. I mean, I think it’s so great to be young and healthy and in shape because I think that helped him recover and get through.”
Back home in Minneapolis, Max was in the hospital every other weekend doing chemotherapy through the end of the year. Then that stopped working. “We tried immunotherapy, which they don't do a ton for his kind of cancer. The immunotherapy didn't help but they didn't really have any more options at that point. That was kind of the theme of everything for his cancer. Eventually the treatment would stop working.”
The entire three years that Max was treated at the University of Minnesota, there was never another kid that had his same rare diagnosis. Max was always willing to give the doctors any information they needed on his rare cancer. He wanted to send them records and charts to help them learn more about pediatric HCC. He reasoned, "Well, what if I live long enough or what they do helps me?"
In November 2024, Max’s scan showed his liver was overtaken with tumors and was failing to function. The newly found lung nodules and a lower pelvis tumor were unfortunately growing. The Akerson family and his medical team made the difficult decision to move him to hospice care. Max made it to his 16th birthday and celebrated with loved ones. A few days later, almost three years after diagnosis, Max passed away on November 26, 2024.
“Max was so brave at every doctor visit and every surgery. He took it all head-on. He was always forward facing. I think that people didn’t realize last fall how sick he was and how hard it was for him because he kept showing up for football and kept playing. His passing kind of came as a surprise. I think people thought he had a lot more time than he did.”
The Akerson family
Sarah and Max Akerson
How DId staying physically active affect Max’s journey?
“Max loved every sport you can think of. He played soccer from preschool age on and continued to add more sports to his roster. He was into everything he could possibly play and learn. In his last two years he played basketball, hockey and football. It frustrated him to have to be in the hospital and not be able to play his sports during his chemo treatments.
One of his best triumphs was in July 2024 when he got an earlier surgery scheduled that gave him the chance to get back for football season. I would see his surgeon and ask, ‘Can you please clear him right now? Because he wants to play football so badly.’ He was able to go to fall practice and do the conditioning. He couldn't lift just yet, but he was so determined to get back out there and play that season.”
“Being active was like his whole purpose in life. He loved to play sports and be together with people.”
What advice Would Max have for people on staying ACTIVE throughout their DIAGNOSIS?
“If you were active before treatment, then staying active is just a part of life that you don’t want cancer to take away. I think it takes your mind off thinking about cancer while you are active. It’s nice to have a break from thinking about it constantly.
Even while taking oral chemo he would go to football practice and participate. When he was out on the field, his muscles and feet would ache, but he didn’t think about having cancer. Sports provided a mental break from thinking about how sick he was.”
At the 2024 Brave Like Gabe 5K!
The 2022 Crucial Catch Vikings Game to bring awareness and treatment for all cancers
“Max ran the Brave Like Gabe 5K in 23 minutes as a football and hockey player! He hung up the survivor bib in his room when he got home from the race.”
How has Gabe's story impacted you?
“There’s similarities between Gabe and Max’s rare cancer experience. Max did whatever the doctors told him to do. Faced everything head-on and did everything they said might help him. He would ask, ‘When can I go back and play my sports? When can I go back to school?’ He didn't have a lot of time where he was down in the dumps and frustrated. He'd get mad that he didn't feel good or he wasn't able to do everything at the level that he used to, but he didn't dwell on that a lot.
The Brave Like Gabe Foundation has been kind of in our background and maybe a little bit of our inspiration for trying to do something positive through it all. We weren't really even thinking about any kind of foundation until right as he was passing away. We received a lot of money from people in our community. We are trying to give back by doing sports scholarships at the high school and then give money to Dana Farber for research.”
“If something gets developed through what we do, it can maybe help other kids with cancer. Even if it’s not for Max’s kind of cancer, it would be gratifying for us to know that it can help someone else. It keeps Max’s spirit alive.”
What does it mean to be #BraveLikeMAX?
“Being #BraveLikeMax would mean living every moment doing the things you want to do. Sports, hanging out with friends, school, work. Not letting cancer define your life. Max was so brave at every doctor visit, Every surgery, he took it all head on.” - Max’s mom, Sarah
“Being #BraveLikeMax is showing up and doing the hard things.“ - Max’s dad, Robb
“Being #BraveLikeMax means being ambitious, hardworking and fast.“ - Max’s younger sister
Max and his younger sisters
WHAt Is your family looking forward to in the near future?
“Without Max here with us our vision is to keep raising funds for researchers at Dana Farber Cancer Institute and Count Me In through our efforts at the Play for Max Foundation. As a parent it's really nice to be able to talk about him and share him with other people. This is helping us take the bad of losing him and seeing what we can do in his honor.
We hope to support our community that has supported us by sponsoring youth/high school sports, giving scholarships to our high school graduates and possibly helping to build a place in our community for people to be active right here. We are grateful for the opportunity to spread Max’s story and help others fight and beat cancer.”
Even through long hospital stays, Max was joyful and silly.
One of Max’s favorite pastimes at the hospital was playing with legos!
Why “Play For Max”?
“Max was diagnosed on a Wednesday and they were supposed to have a hockey tournament in Rochester on Friday. His teammates taped all of their sticks orange and even most of the players on the opposing teams taped their sticks orange too. Then it kind of blew up from there. Our local athletic store made orange t-shirts that said “Play for Max.” Max’s little sister wears an orange shirt pretty much every day from her collection.
The “Play for Max” message was initially about playing for him while he can't as he’s going through treatment. That kind of has carried through. That's why his foundation is called Play For Max. It was one of those things where it just evolves slowly and I know that Max would be super happy that we're doing what we're doing.”
Sarah and Robb Akerson founded the Play For Max Foundation in 2025 with the goal of honoring Max’s life through funding endeavors that were deeply meaningful to him. The foundation’s mission is to support educational opportunities through scholarship. To promote participation in youth sports. To help research into rare childhood cancers. To support families that are going through this journey.
