The Hon. AILEEN MacDONALD (21:38): There is nothing more heartbreaking than the loss of a child. For many families across regional New South Wales, the words "your child has cancer" change life forever. Each year in Australia more than 1,000 children and adolescents are diagnosed with cancer. It remains the leading cause of disease-related death in children. While medical research has lifted survival rates over 80 per cent, around 200 children still die from cancer in Australia every year. Thousands more suffer severe and lifelong side effects from treatment, infertility, chronic pain, developmental delay, cardiac toxicity and secondary cancers.

The Children's Cancer Institute is doing something about it. Based in New South Wales, CCI is the nation's only independent medical research centre wholly dedicated to childhood cancer. Through precision medicine programs like Zero Childhood Cancer and cutting-edge projects like Anya's Wish, it is giving hope where once there was none. Anya from Armidale was just 19 years old when she passed away from osteosarcoma, an aggressive bone cancer. Named in her memory, Anya's Wish is a world‑leading research initiative focused on finding safer, more effective treatments for that brutal disease—treatments that target the cancer, not the child—because we can and we must do better.

Turning closer to where I live, I also share the story of Peta, a bright, athletic nine-year-old. Peta loved running, gymnastics and horses. She was determined and sweet and had already decided she wanted to be a vet when she grew up. But in the space of two weeks, everything changed. After a whirlwind of symptoms, multiple hospital visits and, finally, an MRI, Peta was diagnosed with a tumour in her brain. She underwent surgery, then endured rounds of chemotherapy and radiation. Her doctors were hopeful. She ran each day, determined to get back to the things she loved.

For a while, it looked like she had beaten the odds. But six months later the cancer returned, this time in her spine. Surgery was not an option. Even so, Peta and her devoted family fought on, enrolling in a clinical trial and caring for her with love, hope and dignity. Peta passed away in 2022, but her courage and generosity live on. Her family published Tildy's Sausage Sensation, a children's book Peta started while in treatment, with proceeds going to the Children's Cancer Institute. It is a beautiful tribute to a beautiful soul, and a reminder that every child lost is a loss not just to their family but also to the whole world. As her mother, Kate, said, "We must not count just the cases, but the life years lost."

I honour every family that has walked that road, often quietly and without fanfare, across our regional communities. The Zero Childhood Cancer program, co-led by the CCI and the Kids Cancer Centre at the Sydney Children's Hospital Network, is now available to every child in Australia with cancer—no matter the type, stage or risk. Already more than 2,000 children have been enrolled, including many from regional New South Wales. But more must be done. Rare childhood cancers like osteosarcoma still carry devastating survival rates. Two‑thirds of survivors face lifelong consequences, and families in the regions still face long travel, limited access and fewer supports.

Childhood cancer may be rare, but its impact is vast. With greater awareness, investment and care, we can change the future for children like Peta and Anya. I knew both Peta's parents and Anya's parents, and I have seen firsthand the courage, generosity and grace they have shown through unimaginable grief. Yet, despite their loss, Anya's parents continue to lead efforts in research and fundraising to help other families and to give future children a fighting chance. Their strength reminds us why that work matters. Let us honour it by standing beside them and by backing the research, care and compassion that every child deserves.