'You and you alone know your body'

Ormond Beach Observer
Neighbors

It’s a good thing Debbie Buckwald listened to what Gloria Max told her.

Max, who was named Citizen of the Year in 2015 by Citizens for Ormond Beach, was diagnosed last year with peritoneal and ovarian cancer. She later had surgery, but said recently that the doctor was not able to remove the microscopic cancer. She is continuing to take chemo treatments and will have a scan later this year to see if she is clear.

“I’m having bad side effects but I am still coming to work every day,” she said recently. “I am not a hero, but going to work, and seeing and helping people, eases my pain Work is my therapy.”

Her work is the Jewish Federation of Volusia and Flagler Counties, which distributes food to the needy through the Jerry Doliner Food Bank and also has an annual campaign to supply schoolchildren with backpacks full of supplies. The organization also provides meals during the holidays and assists people with clothing, furniture and medical equipment.

Buckwald, a volunteer at the federation, recalls chatting with Max last October. Max told her, “If you think something is wrong — you and you alone know your body — go to the Dr. and have yourself tested.”

In November, she started to feel unwell, but thought it was because she worried about her daughter who was pregnant. She would get out of breath walking across the Granada Bridge, which she did for exercise.

The day after Thanksgiving, she ate a piece of turkey and started choking. Luckily, her son-in-law performed the Heimlich maneuver. Later, when eating out in DeLand, she choked again and this time her husband did the procedure.

“That prompted me to see the doctor,” she said.

An X-ray in February showed a large mass in the chest. A biopsy showed large T-cell lymphoma and she began chemotherapy treatments.

“It’s a good thing I went in because I found out it is a fast-growing, aggressive type,” she said. “If it was found 30 days later — things could be a lot different. “

After a few treatments, the mass shrunk 90%, Buckwald said recently. After her sixth treatment, she will have a PET scan to determine future treatments.

She has stopped volunteering at the federation, but has stopped by for visits to see Max.

“Gloria is phenomenal,” she said. “I stopped by one morning and she was there working even though she had chemo that afternoon.”