LOS ANGELES — In a move to support children facing serious illness, Mattel has announced it will donate 10,000 Brave Barbie and Brave Ken dolls each year to young patients experiencing hair loss due to conditions such as cancer and autoimmune disease. The initiative coincides with Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, observed every September.

Expanding the Brave Doll Line

The Brave Barbie doll, first introduced in 2013, was created to help children coping with medical treatments see themselves reflected in a beloved toy. The updated 2025 edition expands representation with two skin tones, removable wigs, and a range of accessories, including headphones, hats, headbands, customizable stickers, and stylish outfits.

For the first time, Mattel is also launching a Brave Ken doll, designed with a rooted wig and fashion-forward clothing to offer boys the same sense of comfort and recognition.

Mattel said the Brave dolls are intended to remind children that “they are brave, strong, and beautiful.”

A Decade of Comfort and Representation

“For more than a decade, Brave Barbie has offered children comfort and reassurance that they are not alone on this journey,” said Nancy Molenda, Mattel’s vice president of global corporate events and philanthropy. “With their meaningful new look and expansion to Brave Ken, these dolls continue to embody courage and compassion. Placing these dolls into the hands of families and seeing the light they bring during life’s hardest moments is profoundly humbling.”

Distribution Through Global Partnerships

The dolls will not be available for retail purchase but will instead be distributed through national and international children’s organizations. These include:

• Ronald McDonald House Charities

• Starlight Children’s Foundation

• CureSearch for Children’s Cancer

• Koala Kids

• Save the Children

• Fundación Teletón

• In Kind Direct

Additional partnerships extend to medical groups and hospitals such as the Children’s Hospital Association, American Cancer Society – California, National Alopecia Areata Foundation, Rady Children’s Hospital, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, UCLA Mattel Children’s Hospital, and City of Hope Children’s Cancer Center.

A Broader Mission

The Brave Barbie initiative follows Mattel’s recent efforts to create more inclusive dolls, including Barbies that represent Type 1 diabetes, prosthetics, hearing aids, and skin conditions like vitiligo. The company has positioned these initiatives as part of its broader mission to ensure every child can find a doll that reflects their own experience.