Belinda Emmett, a star of the internationally-televised Australian soap opera "Home and Away," died Saturday after a long battle with cancer , her family said. She was 32.

Emmett was best known for her character Rebecca Fisher, later Rebecca Nash, whom she played in the long-running drama between 1996 and 1999.

The program, which has been shown in about 50 countries and is particularly popular in the United Kingdom, began in 1988 and is still running.

Emmett was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1998 at age 24.

After a period in remission, Emmett was diagnosed with secondary bone cancer in 2001, while playing nurse Jodi Horner in the Australian hospital TV drama "All Saints."

She died in a Sydney hospital surrounded by family including Australian television talk show host Rove McManus, whom she married last year, the family said in a statement.

"It is with great sadness we advise that Belinda Emmett's battle with cancer has ended," the statement said.