Puppy Love: Dog owners post adorable photos to Facebook for teen battling cancer

PHOENIX, Az. -- When in the hospital getting cancer treatments, 16-year-old Anthony Lyons gets great joy out of visits from dogs. His mother's friends hoped that extending that therapy to Facebook would bring him even more joy, so they started an event.

Lesson learned: When you ask dog owners to post photos of their dogs to cheer someone up, they deliver. And then some.

The page creators said they have received half a million photos and counting from all over the world. When posting, many share their location and describe the dog's personality in a sweet or silly way that they hope will make Anthony smile.

"Your pets have brightened our days so much and it just shows you the power of pet thearapy and animal healing," Anthony's mother Kristen wrote on the Facebook event page. "This just shows what great people animal lovers are and we are really feeling the love from you and your pets in this difficult time."

According to the Facebook page, Anthony, who has acute lymphoblastic leukemia, started a week-long chemotherapy session on Friday.

Roberta Lucero-Koron, one of the friends who started the event, updated again on Sunday to say that the photos had surpassed half a million and to express hopes that those visiting the page would also get joy out of it.

"One thing I have to say is, make yourself smile too by looking at these beautiful animals that God gave us," she said.

Join the movement by sharing photos of your dog on the Facebook event, "Photo doggies for Anthony".