Father-daughter duo fought liver disease together

Date: 4/27/2009

By Laura Christiansen

Staff Intern



The 26.2-mile Boston Marathon took place on April 20. Daniel Flynn of Longmeadow and his daughter Katye ran in the race. They ran for the American Liver Foundation's (ALF) Run for Research team.

According to www.liverteam.org, the team helps promote awareness of the dangers of liver disease and helps raise funds for research programs and education.

ALF has participated in the Boston Marathon since 1988 and, since then, has raised more than $11 million.

"It's a great cause to raise money for and it is something that we are familiar with. I have had very minor issues with my liver and we thought that this would be a way to have some fun, be with my daughter and raise some money for a good cause," Daniel said.

"We've done an 18-week training program through the ALF Run for Research team. It consists of shorter runs during the week and longer runs on weekends," Katye said.

Daniel has run in a marathon before.

"My daughter is the one that asked me to run. I thought it would be pretty cool to run the marathon and help her get through it. It's the first one she's done," Daniel said.

"It [was] nice to have him there for support since he's been there before," Katye said.

According to www.liverfoundation.org, not very many people are aware of the dangers of liver disease. It affects one out of every 10 Americans and the numbers are increasing.

"A lot of it's diet related and it's something that people aren't generally aware of. A lot of diseases get more attention than liver disease. It's less [commonly spoken about] but it can be severe. A lot of it is just a healthy diet, healthy living and seeing your doctor. If it's caught early, it is easier to treat," Daniel said.

Katye didn't just run for the sole cause of the ALF; she had another motivation that she believed helped her get through the race successfully.

"I [ran] in honor of a child. His name is Dominic Laurenzano, I think he's about 13, and he has had three liver transplants. I [had] him in the back of my mind. It's nice to know you're running for someone other than yourself," Katye said.

Together they have raised nearly $10,000 to benefit the ALF.

"We contacted friends and business acquaintances and they were very generous towards the cause," Daniel said.

"It's nice to run for a good cause. The money goes towards research and education. Without the funding there will be no steps for the cure of liver disease," Katye said.