2024 Super Bowl Ad Brings Viewers Face to Snout With Roswell Park Therapy Dogs

BUFFALO, N.Y. — Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center is spotlighting our 2024 Super Bowl MVPs — the Most Valuable Pups who are considered the “goodest boys and girls” by patients and staff alike. The cancer center is debuting “Tails of Hope,” a local television commercial featuring its therapy dog program, airing in the Buffalo market during the big game on Sunday, February 11. 

Roswell Park therapy dogs have been a staple at the cancer center since 2006, providing a dose of happiness to those who need it most. Inspired by the pups’ steadfast love and willingness to accept belly rubs, Roswell Park’s Emmy-award winning marketing team wagged its tails at the chance to produce their ninth annual regional Super Bowl ad and highlight just how much joy these fluffy and furry companions bring to all they encounter. 

The commercial opens as if viewers are walking through Roswell Park as a therapy dog — they just don’t know it yet. Narration of patient visits, families finding comfort and a peek into the research labs all come into view before the plot twist is revealed … and golden retriever Hawk makes his on-screen debut. Celebrating victories of all sizes and earning a hug from one of our youngest patients, the narrator — as Hawk — says, “They call me a therapy dog, but I think I’m just a lucky boy.”

“Seeing a dog in a hospital and petting or hugging a dog can make such a difference in your day. The moment you’re around an animal, that not only take your minds off things, it puts you in a relaxed state. I’m so thankful our organization recognizes just how beneficial this program is for our patients, their loved ones, and our staff,” says Nicole Gerber, PhD, co-creator of the therapy dog program and Occupational and Environmental Safety Program Manager at Roswell Park. Her beloved English setter Monty, who often made weekly rounds, is forever memorialized as a life-sized bronze statue outside Roswell Park’s main entrance, in Kaminski Park & Gardens.

In addition to the 60-second commercial, Roswell Park therapy dogs take center stage in a brand-new wall calendar available for purchase for $10 at the hospital’s gift shop, thanks to a generous donation from Dave & Adams Card World. Proceeds from the calendar benefit the Roswell Park Alliance Foundation’s Quality of Life grants, which provides essential programming to lend a helping hand, give emotional support or offer up creative outlets for patients and their families. A limited run of free therapy dog “trading cards” will be also passed out to Roswell Park patients and visitors. 

Roswell Park is previewing the video on its social media platforms this week and encouraging everyone to share why their “fur babies” and “doggos” are special to them. Follow the conversation on Roswell Park’s Facebook, Twitter/X, Instagram and LinkedIn pages. 

Note to media: a downloadable version of the ad is available upon request.

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From the world’s first chemotherapy research to the PSA prostate cancer biomarker, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center generates innovations that shape how cancer is detected, treated and prevented worldwide. Driven to eliminate cancer’s grip on humanity, the Roswell Park team of 4,000 makes compassionate, patient-centered cancer care and services accessible across New York State and beyond. Founded in 1898, Roswell Park was among the first three cancer centers nationwide to become a National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center and is the only one to hold this designation in Upstate New York. To learn more about Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center and the Roswell Park Care Network, visit www.roswellpark.org, call 1-800-ROSWELL (1-800-767-9355) or email ASKRoswell@RoswellPark.org.