The marrow donor registry just got its most refreshing upgrade yet — and it tastes like mint. In a bold new initiative that combines science, sweetness, and social good, Gift of Life Marrow Registry, in partnership with Labcorp and DOUBLEMINT, has unveiled Hero Gum: the world’s first chewing gum that doubles as a DNA collection kit.
The campaign kicks off August 1st at Citi Field during the Mets vs. Giants game, where fans will be among the first to try a piece of gum that could save a life.
Developed with adam&eveDDB New York, Hero Gum reframes bone marrow registry signup as a quick, easy — even fun — experience. Just chew the gum for five minutes, and you’re on your way to joining the national stem cell registry. No awkward swabs, no paperwork pileup. Just minty-fresh potential.
“We’ve spent years making the registry more accessible, but Hero Gum might be our most creative breakthrough yet,” said Marti Freund, COO at Gift of Life. “By turning something familiar into a powerful tool, we’re opening the door for younger, more diverse communities to join the fight against blood cancer.”
Labcorp confirmed that DNA-rich cheek cells from chewed gum provide viable samples for HLA typing—the crucial first step in matching patients with donors battling leukemia, lymphoma, and other life-threatening diseases.
The stats are sobering:
- Every three minutes, someone in the U.S. is diagnosed with blood cancer.
- Nearly 20,000 Americans need a stem cell or marrow transplant annually.
- 70% of patients rely on strangers through registries — not family — to find a match.
Hero Gum’s mission? Shrink those odds. “By teaming up with Gift of Life, we’re helping turn a simple act into a potentially life-saving moment,” said Dr. Brian Caveney, Labcorp’s Chief Medical & Scientific Officer. “This is health innovation made human.”
The rollout includes a 60-second PR film, custom packaging, digital activations, social media content, and in-person distribution at high-traffic events, colleges, and community centers. Animation for the campaign was led by Unsaid Studio, with support from Omnicom Studios and music by Human Worldwide and APM. Watch below:
The creative team at adam&eveDDB poured their hearts (and plenty of late nights) into bringing the idea to life. “This is the kind of campaign you dream about — deceptively simple, emotionally powerful, and impossible to ignore,” said Brynna Aylward, CCO at adam&eveDDB US. “We took gum — something ordinary — and turned it into something extraordinary.”
New Yorkers can catch Hero Gum in action this week at Citi Field, with kits also available online at giftoflife.org/herogum. Chew gum. Save lives. Hero status has never tasted so fresh.
CREDITS:
BRAND: Gift of Life Marrow Registry
- Founder and Chief Executive Officer: Jay Feinberg
- Chief Strategy and Operations Officer, General Counsel: Marti Freund
- Director of Marketing: Amy Glanzman
- Donor Recruitment Director: Chris Camacho
BRAND: DOUBLEMINT
- Vice President Marketing Gum & Mints: Sissy Urista
- Senior Brand Manager: Kelly Shipp
- NA Brand & Content Director: Adriana Madiedo
BRAND: Labcorp
- Chief Medical and Scientific Officer: Brian Caveney, M.D.
- Labcorp’s Communications & Marketing Team
AGENCY: adam&eveDDBÂ New York
- Chief Executive Officer: Caroline Winterton
- Managing Director: James Rowe
- Chief Creative Officer, U.S.: Brynna Aylward
- Head of Strategy: Stu Harrison
- Head of Design: Mitch Horton
- Head of Creative Operations: Kimmy Harvey
- Executive Creative Director: Jason Ashlock
- Executive Creative Director: Paulo Junger
- Creative Director: Mussashi Shintaku
- Creative Director: Vinicius Fernandes
- Associate Design Director: Melanie Coyne
- Art Director: Jay Checo
- Art Director: Melissa Rosner
- Copywriter: Samuel Hamerski
- Junior Art Director: Tahmari Tupponce
- Junior Copywriter: Maddie Otero
- Executive Director: Alan Perlman
- Account Supervisor: Kevin Tejada
- Deputy Head of Project Management: Ana Esterov
- Senior Project Manager: Miranda Manziano-Reynolds
- Group Director, Communications Strategy: Angel Navedo
- Senior Strategist: Tiffany Jyang
- Head of Creative Talent & Culture: Rene Ramirez
- Interns: Anika Shandalov, Sofia Lee, Maya Yin, Benaelle Benoit, Danielle Cerutti, Jack Levin
PRODUCTION MANAGEMENT: Omnicom Production
- Head of Production: John Doris
- Executive Producer: Teri Altman
- Producer: Kayla Rudess
- Group Business Affairs Lead: Kelly McCann
PR AGENCY: W Communications North America
- Account Director: Evie Gavriel
- Account Director: Meagan Hoellerman
- Account Manager: Gillian Shenkman
3D Animation Production: Unsaid Studio
- Director: Doug Bello
- Producers: Franco Cavezale and Ana Bettoni
- 3D Modeling: Luciano Nader and Alix Portier
- Animation: Fabricio Luiz
- Render: Pablo Porto and Caique Silva
- Character Design: Alix Poirier
- Rigger: Rodrigo Rodrigues
- Motion Design: Renan Stein
- Creative Direction: Tom Alex Buch
- Executive Producer: Keka Petrich
LIVE ACTION ANIMATION: Omnicom Studios
- Live Action Director – Larkland Burton
- Audio Engineer – Kyle Dirr
- Executive Post Producer: Tricia Higgins
- Senior Producer: Mary Wright
- Junior Post Producer/Content Creator – Justin Oletsky
- Senior Editor: Henry DeMaio
- Post Producer: Cassandra Peterson
- Senior Sound Engineer: Dominic Zunino
- Colorist: Aaron Flickinger
ANIMATION MUSIC: Human Worldwide
- Managing Director/Global EP: James Dean Wells
- Producer: Nicole Riolo
- Creative Lead: Andy Bloch
- Composer: Daryl Pinsdorf
LIVE ACTION LICENSING: APM
“OMG”
- Written by Simon James, Von Hemingway, and William Riddims
- Courtesy of APM Music LLC
PRINT PRODUCTION: Bluedge
Graphic Communication Director: Greg Grasso
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