BE on yellow alert. That is the message of a devoted father who came close to losing his little girl.

Richard Mellen, of Acomb, in York, is backing a new campaign launched by the Children's Liver Disease Foundation (CLDF) as a way of thanking the medical staff who saved his daughter's life.

Six year old Lydia was born with a very serious liver condition that went undetected until she fell ill with jaundice at eight-weeks-old.

Her quick-thinking doctor recognised the warning signs of a life-threatening liver disease and Lydia was transferred to St James's Hospital in Leeds for specialist treatment.

Richard, 37, said: "We were lucky that our doctor was a paediatric specialist, and was able to recognise that Lydia wasn't simply suffering from standard baby jaundice.

"Had we not had such a good GP, it might have cost Lydia's life. It could have been a very different story.

"My message to parents is that if your child becomes jaundiced, don't think you're wasting somebody's time - go and get it checked out as soon as possible.

"It could be the warning signs of a serious liver condition and if it is missed and just passed off as jaundice, it could be very very dangerous."

He added: "It was a very scary time for us. Lydia started losing weight at an alarming rate and even dipped below her birth weight."

Lydia suffers from a very rare condition called Progressive Familial Intrahepatic Cholestasis and eventually her liver would have stopped working completely.

But as we reported last week, the youngster underwent a successful liver transplant six weeks ago and can now look forward to a long and full life.

The Yellow Alert campaign aims to raise awareness of the key signs of liver disease, including prolonged jaundice, pale stools and yellow urine.

Any of these symptoms must be reported immediately to a midwife, health visitor or GP, so a special blood test can be carried out to rule out liver disease.

Catherine Arkley, of CLDF, said: "At least one baby is born with liver disease every day in the UK, but we have no way of telling which baby will be affected.

"There is no specific group at risk of liver disease. It could strike any family, anytime, so it is important that everyone remains alert to the signs, which are easy to spot.

"In the early stages of liver disease a baby can look and feed entirely well, which can be misleading for everyone."

One of the most common types of liver disease among babies is Biliary Atresia. These babies will need an operation at eight-weeks-old before the liver becomes damaged.

If the condition goes undetected beyond this time, the baby's only other option is a liver transplant, which means a desperate wait for donor organ.


Danger signs

Prolonged jaundice: Jaundice is very common in newborn babies. It reaches its peak at about four days and then gradually disappears in most babies by the time they are two-weeks-old. Prolonged jaundice can be a sign of liver disease.

Persistent yellow urine staining the nappy: Urine in a healthy baby should be colourless.

Persistent pale-coloured stools: Healthy-coloured stools are English mustard yellow in bottle fed babies and daffodil yellow in breast fed babies.