Healthcare mascots wear their cause on their sleeves

Sure, McDonald's may have Ronald McDonald and Geico has that gecko. But can they really compete with an enormous urine cup on legs called Petey P. Cup? Or Mr. Testicles, a giant set of, well, testicles (or at least someone walking around in a plush costume approximating said body part)?

They range from the friendly to the ribald, but a number of health organizations employ mascots to grab attention, educate and entertain.

UW Health in Madison, Wis., uses Dottie the Donor Dot, a mascot in a round, orange plush costume to promote the “Yes, I Will” campaign to encourage organ donation. Dottie was inspired by the orange dot that registered organ donors in the state place on their driver's licenses.

In Illinois, two other organ donation organizations, Donate Life Illinois and the Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network, send a giant liver to community events. Morgan D'Organ wears a huge smiley face on his soft, pink outfit.

Across the pond in the U.K., the Male Cancer Awareness Campaign has a team of “champions” it uses to “raise awareness and reduce embarrassment” about the various cancers it targets with a strong dose of bawdy humor.

Mr. Testicles devotes his time to raising awareness of the cancer of his eponymous body part. Near Naked Man, a helmeted figure in a white jumpsuit adorned with a generous supply of chest hair and a fig leaf in the appropriate place, campaigns for awareness of prostate cancer.

James Bum 002, a parody of a certain famous fictional member of Her Majesty's Secret Service, is suave in a tuxedo, though one with the seat of the pants cut out, as the disease he targets is bowel cancer.

But the Male Cancer Awareness Campaign has even bigger plans. It's now raising money on Indiegogo to build a hot air balloon shaped like a giant pair of testicles called Skyballs, which the group says will be “world's biggest cancer awareness tool.” Since the online fundraiser started Aug. 25, donors have given more than £12,400 toward the £60,000 goal. The deadline is Oct. 14. Donors are being rewarded with a variety of perks, from getting their name on the plaque on the balloon's basket for £10 to wedding transport in the balloon for a groom and his attendants for £10,000.

Irish actor Chris O'Dowd and “Family Guy” character Peter Griffin have been signed on as boosters of the project.

Petey P. Cup is the official “spokescup” for Minnesota's HealthPartners system. He's a very high-profile kind of cup, what with attending events to represent HealthPartners, his own Facebook page and Twitter account, as well as a LinkedIn account. Petey is also an award winner, with the campaign in which he's featured earning a 2009 Gold Effie award for effective advertising.

He's one of three mascots for HealthPartners, along with his “best friend” Pokey the Syringe, the system's official “spokesneedle”; and Pearl E. White, a giant tooth with toothbrush and floss accessories, who promotes dental health. HealthPartners also sells a variety of T-shirts, caps, bags and other merchandise featuring the trio.