Change the future for children and young people with sarcoma. Donate to Anya's Wish.
Anya’s Wish is a world leading research program at Children’s Cancer Institute, focused on finding more effective and far less toxic treatments for osteosarcoma, an aggressive bone cancer that overwhelmingly affects teenagers and young adults.
Anya’s Wish is named in memory of Anya Zuber, a vivacious and radiant 19-year-old who passed away from osteosarcoma in 2020.
This aggressive cancer, which most often affects teenagers and young adults, continues to carry a very poor prognosis. For those diagnosed with advanced disease, or who experience relapse, only around one in five will survive.
Anya wanted better. Through Anya’s Wish, we are working to deliver the safer, more effective treatments in her honour.
What is the aim of our research?
For young people diagnosed with osteosarcoma, current treatment options are extremely limited. Standard therapies, major surgery, often amputation, and intensive chemotherapy, have barely changed in four decades. They can cause serious side effects, and tragically, they still fail far too many patients.
Led by Associate Professor Emmy Fleuren at Children’s Cancer Institute Anya’s Wish is dedicated to developing new, targeted treatments that are not only more effective, but significantly less harmful to young bodies. Our work focuses on:
- Identifying novel, highly specific drugs that directly target osteosarcoma cells
- Combining targeted therapies to overcome treatment resistance
- Understanding how and why these drugs work, and which young patients will benefit most
- Exploring whether these discoveries may also help treat other aggressive sarcomas in children
Our goal is simple and urgent: kinder, smarter, more effective treatments that offer real hope for children and young people.
Find out more about the research by watching the video below.
“We’re finally seeing effects in the lab that I’ve rarely witnessed in all my years of sarcoma research, including complete tumour shrinkage in our models. It’s incredibly encouraging, and it’s only possible because of your support”
Associate Professor Emmy Fleuren
Team Leader, Children's Cancer Institute
What has been achieved so far?
Thanks to the extraordinary generosity of the wonderful Anya’s Wish community of fundraisers and donors, the research project here at the Institute is already delivering breakthrough discoveries.
Our researchers have created eight new models of osteosarcoma using tumour samples donated by patients. This gives scientists a far more realistic way to study the disease than ever before. These models allow us to test new treatments more accurately, helping identify therapies that are more likely to work for children and young people, and avoid those that won’t.
Using these models, the team has:
- Identified a promising new targeted drug that stops osteosarcoma cells from growing
- Shown that this drug halts tumour growth not only in the lab, but also in mini human osteosarcoma tumours grown in avatar models
- Discovered that combining this drug with a second targeted therapy makes the treatment even more effective and well tolerated
- Found early evidence that this drug combination may also work for other aggressive childhood sarcomas, dramatically expanding the potential impact of the work
- Even observed complete tumour shrinkage in some of the laboratory sarcoma models, a rare and highly promising result
These discoveries signal a genuine step change in osteosarcoma research and bring us closer than ever to safer, more effective treatments for young people.
The next step in this research is to continue testing these treatments in the lab and in advanced models, building the strong and reliable evidence needed to move into clinical trials. This is a critical step toward making these therapies available to patients — bringing us closer to the day they can be used in hospitals to improve outcomes for children and young people with osteosarcoma.
Anya's story
Anya was 13 when she was diagnosed with high-grade metastatic osteosarcoma – an aggressive and life-threatening bone cancer.
Throughout her 6-year journey, Anya's strength, toughness and bravery inspired all those around her.
This is her story.
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While other teenage girls were going to school and catching up with their friends, Anya began treatment under Professor Stewart Kellie at The Cancer Centre for Children at Westmead Children’s Hospital. Over the next ten months, she would endure six rounds of chemotherapy and limb-saving surgery on her leg.
Her mum, Liz, was beside her through it all.
“They wanted to hit her hard with several rounds of chemotherapy first and then do the major operation on her left leg.”
Coming from Armidale, the diagnosis turned the family’s life upside down. Liz, her husband Will and Anya’s brother, Alexander, relocated to Sydney where they lived in an apartment at Ronald McDonald House on the grounds of the hospital, and Alexander attended a local school.
At the end of treatment in December 2015, Anya got the ‘all clear’ from her specialists and was able to return home. The family enjoyed a long-anticipated holiday at their favourite beach, followed by some rich family celebrations over Christmas in Armidale.
“It was so joyful; she’d done it! Then after we got home, Anya noticed some bruising down the back of her leg.”
Tests in January 2016 confirmed the family’s worst fears – the cancer was back. They returned to Sydney where Anya received a further six months of intensive chemotherapy and high-dose radiation, pushing the boundaries of what she could tolerate.
In August 2016, she was again given the ‘all clear’. Over the next few years, Anya took great delight in things that most teenagers take for granted: being at home, going to school, and seeing friends.
“I was so proud of Anya. She’d got through it yet again and had her future ahead of her. She got through high school, did her HSC and was planning to go to university.”
Anya’s struggle with osteosarcoma helped strengthen her mental and physical toughness, as she bravely faced treatment and worked hard on recovery. In November 2019, she expressed a wish to move from Westmead Children’s Hospital to an adult hospital. She transferred to the Chris O’Brien Lifehouse, where she continued regular observation under the watchful eyes of oncologist, Dr Vivek Bahdri, and highly regarded orthopaedic surgeon, Dr Richard Boyle, who had looked after Anya from day one.
A scan in May 2020 showed a reoccurrence of the cancer in her lungs. She underwent successful surgery in July, and again, the family looked towards a bright future as Anya and her boyfriend Ky made plans to move to Queensland for university.
However, on 30 August 2020, Anya discovered further symptoms. “She came down the stairs and said ‘There’s something wrong’”.
On 1 September, a scan showed masses in the right lung and the superior vena cava. Anya was rushed to Sydney the next day. She lost her brave battle on 12 September, surrounded by her loved ones.
Toward the end, Anya dreaded the prospect of further chemotherapy and wished for less invasive regimes like immunotherapy. She wished that her body, her experience with the disease, and any other resources be focused on the ongoing research to end childhood cancer, and particularly sarcomas.
“She had just fought so hard for so long and she said ‘You’ve got to do something about this’. So that was the beginning of Anya’s Wish.”
Anya’s Wish is a dedicated osteosarcoma research program conducted by Children’s Cancer Institute. Led by Senior Scientist Dr Emmy Fleuren, it is focused on developing targeted therapies for children with osteosarcoma, which are not only effective at killing cancer cells, but are much less harsh than conventional chemotherapy, causing fewer side effects.
Anya’s Wish is entirely funded by the community, in particular by dedicated friends, businesses and supporters in her home town of Armidale.
In the future, plans are in place to maximise the chances of curing sarcoma by researching additional treatment approaches, such as immunotherapy and combination therapies, which it is hoped will mean stories like Anya’s become a thing of the past.
“Something’s really not right when you have to say goodbye to your child. Through this research and through the community, we can make a real impact, and it’s essential that we do.”
19 for 19 Challenge
On Sunday 19 October 2025, join the 19 for 19 challenge to honour the 19 precious years that Anya lived for.
Whether you walk, run or cycle 19km, do 19 star jumps, run 19 laps of your local park or are able to walk 19km with us in Armidale - together we can make a difference for generations to come.
Every kilometre we embark together will help us to move one step closer to improving the outcomes for children diagnosed with osteosarcoma.
Anya’s Wish: Our Journey So Far
Thanks to the extraordinary generosity of our community, Anya’s Wish has progressed faster and further than we ever thought possible.
Below is a snapshot of the key milestones that your support has made happen - from early funding and scientific breakthroughs to national recognition and world‑first discoveries
