A young lady by the name of Anya Zuber from Armidal, who died of aggressive bone cancer as a teenager, left quite a legacy and helped raise awareness for the disease she fought so hard to beat.
According to the Daily Mail, Zuber was diagnosed at only 13 with osteosarcoma, a rare and aggressive bone cancer that has a shockingly high mortality rate.
Between the ages of 13 and 19, Zuber was cleared of the disease on two occasions, which was the result of intense chemotherapy, radiation and surgery treatments.
But when she was 19, after the disease had reemerged in her body, she told her mother three terrifying words that she'll never forget:
Her mother, Elizabeth Egan, recounted the last words she heard her daughter speak, just 10 days before the terrifying and aggressive disease claimed her daughter's life.
"There's something wrong," Zuber said shortly before she passed.
But Zuber made her parents make a promise: that her death wouldn't be in vain. As a result, her parents created "Anya's Wish," and have raised thousands of dollars and generated new attention to the rare and deadly bone cancer.
The Daily Mail noted:
Dr Emmy Fleuren of CCI said that thanks to the funding from Anya's Wish, 'We've been able to generate, at this point, nine new and unique osteosarcoma cells,' which are used to test the effectiveness of drugs.
The project team has also identified other drugs it believes could successfully target osteosarcoma, but it needs more funding.
Dr. Fleuren told the outlet, "'I know that Anya was dedicated to supporting research to find better treatments for children with osteosarcoma."
She added, "There is an absolute and unmet need to do something about these tumours and with Anya's Wish we can do just that."
Her mother announced a fundraising challenge that begins next month. So far, Anya's Wish has raised over $506K, which is going to helping researchers discover new treatment methods, just like Anya wanted.
"Anya's Wish was for her body and experience with the disease to be focussed on the ongoing research to end childhood cancer, particularly sarcoma," her mother said.
She added that her late and amazing daughter would be proud of the upcoming fundraising challenge, which includes calls for people to walk and run to raise money for the foundation.
Clearly, Anya left a mark on this world, and her last wishes could be the very catalyst that leads to a breakthrough in treatments for other children who experience and battle the unfortunate and deadly disease.
