Make-A-Wish Foundation Sending Broncos Fan Battling Aggressive Form Of Cancer To Super Bowl

ANAHEIM (CBSLA.com) — A teen with a life-threatening condition is going to get to see his favorite team, the Denver Broncos, play in the Super Bowl this weekend.

Matthew Vega has battled osteosarcoma, a cancer in his knees, which spread to his lungs.

Vega was only 17 when he watched the Broncos make it to the playoffs and was asked by the Make-A-Wish Foundation for a wish.

He didn't hesitate: the high school football star wanted to see the Broncos play in the Super Bowl.

"But I was put on a waiting list," he said.

That was two years ago. The Broncos ultimately lost in the playoffs.

Then, last month, Vega was taken off the waiting list.

He had no idea who would play in the Super Bowl, but told the Make-A-Wish Foundation his wish hadn't changed.

"When he made his wish, they asked him, 'Are you sure that's what you want even if your team doesn't go,' and he said, 'My team's gonna go,' " his mother said.

Two weeks later, the Broncos won the AFC Championship and were bound for the Super Bowl.

"My wish coming true, it was just a dream," Vega said.

His mother knows though that this wasn't about a football game, but is about a team, a fight, and hope.

"It's a wish. It's an answered prayer," she said.

Vega is one of 14 kids with life-threatening illnesses that the Orange County chapter of the Make-A-Wish Foundation is sending to the Super Bowl.

They leave for San Francisco Thursday.