It started with one question.
Superhope was founded in 2014 by Tarik Batal and Basma Masri. Tarik had lost his grandmother to cancer. Basma was working with cancer patients, raising awareness for people in urgent need of transplants.
Through a friend who was a child psychologist, they learned how much a positive mental attitude matters to a child going through cancer treatment. That led to a question: what better way to lift a child’s spirits than to help them believe they are a superhero?
The answer was never to bring a costume of a hero the child already knows. It was to ask the child to invent their own, and then to make it real.
- The question.We ask the child: if you were a superhero, how would you imagine yourself?
- The drawing.An illustrator draws the hero with the child. As far as the child knows, the drawing is the gift.
- The design.Behind the scenes, designers work out every detail of the Supersuit from the drawing.
- The making.The Supersuit is made by hand and fitted to the child.
- The reveal.A surprise photo shoot and film, where the child becomes the hero they imagined.
One rule has been there from the start: we never talk about cancer with the children. Their time with Superhope is about their hero, their powers and their imagination.
The people around them, from illustrators and costume makers to photographers, filmmakers and care teams, all work toward the moment the child sees themselves as the hero they imagined.
I think when other people around them find it difficult to inspire them, we need to find a way that they are able to inspire themselves.
Psychologist, Great Ormond Street Hospital
Where maybe a lot of decisions are being made for them, Superhope's an opportunity where they can take that bit of power back.
Play Specialist, Great Ormond Street Hospital
As doctors, we always emphasise how important a holistic approach to recovery is. It was great to see the real difference this campaign has made in improving the positive mental attitude of the children during their time being treated at GOSH.
Consultant Paediatric Oncologist, Great Ormond Street Hospital
After experiencing such a Superhope, we see a new lease of life in the children. If someone's able to willingly engage in something because their mood is better, it also means their recovery is significantly better too.
Nurse Manager, Butterfly Ward, Great Ormond Street Hospital
Five campaigns in four hospitals: Tawam Hospital in Al Ain, Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford, CHOC Children’s in Orange County, and Great Ormond Street Hospital in London, twice.
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