MADISON, Wis. -- For many runners, the Madison Marathon represents the pinnacle of achievement.

But one Middleton man has already run away from cancer and on Sunday ran all 26.2 miles to change healthcare in another part of the world. Dave Olive is a lung cancer survivor.

"For a long time, I was very sick and the road back was slow and painful," said Olive. "This has been my way to prove to myself that I'm getting healthy again."

The race was not only a chance for Olive to demonstrate his successful recovery, but also part of his crusade.

"We're making an attempt as a group family health ministries to raise money for a hospital in Leodon, Haiti, that would be specifically for women and children's care," said Olive.

He said the quality of health care in Haiti is so poor he's asking for donations to run the marathon.

"The sooner we can raise the money, the sooner the hospital will be built," said Olive.

Olive and his wife Elizabeth are both physicians and have been involved with family health ministries since his cancer diagnosis in 2007.

"That's when we decided to go to Haiti and get involved in the children's hospital. So, we've kind of made a shift to be more outward focused instead of on our own careers," he said.

Since that time, the Olive family has grown to include the adoption of two Haitian children.

"Dave kind of downplays the whole cancer and what it meant to him, but it really did change his life," said Elizabeth Olive.

Olive's daughters ran the last 100 yards of the marathon with their dad.

"I couldn't have finished it without them," said Olive. "It sure helped."

"I'm just going to cry because I'm so happy," said Elizabeth Olive. "We waited so long to be parents and Dave was so sick so it's just a really good day. When we saw each other when he first came by we were both crying a little."

This is Olive's second marathon since being diagnosed with cancer, his ninth overall. Olive will be raising money by participating in the Iron Man in September.

Anyone interested in learning more about Health Family Ministries or donating to the hospital project can visit their Web site.