Miracle of twins saved in womb op Girls thriving after mother lost other two quadruplets
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TWINS Blossom and Tilly Hodson have survived after an incredible fight for life.
They were originally two of quadruplets but their siblings died in their mother Eli’s womb.
She was given the heartbreaking news eight weeks into her pregnancy.
Blossom and Tilly had to undergo delicate surgery in the womb in a race against time to keep them alive.
But they made it and are now normal three-year-olds living at home with Eli, their father Craig, 29, and brother Max, four.
Eli, 26, of Warminster, Wiltshire, said: “We feel like the luckiest parents in the world.
“They have really fought against all the odds to survive.
“It was devastating when we knew that we had lost two of the quadruplets and the twins were hanging on to survive. To know that we could lose them all was awful. It was such a tense time.”
Eli was thrilled to learn that she was pregnant but a scan at six weeks was a shock when she was told there were four babies.
She said: “I just couldn’t take it in. I had gone to the scan expecting to see one heartbeat – but to see four sacs was unbelievable.
“I was shocked at first and wondering how we were going to cope. But once we had got over it we were looking forward to it.”
However, two weeks later she went for another scan which showed two heartbeats had stopped.
She said: “It was so upsetting to hear that two hadn’t made it. I still had two babies though, so we just had to focus on that.”
Her pregnancy went smoothly until 19 weeks when doctors suspected she may be suffering from “twin to twin transfusion syndrome”, a rare condition where one twin gets too much blood supply and nutrients which puts a strain on the heart, and the other twin is starved of nutrients. It can be fatal for both. Eli said: “It was such a shock. They had been through so much.
“I had already lost two babies. Surely we couldn’t lose these two as well?”
Their only chance of survival was a delicate operation to separate them while still in their mother’s womb. The operation is carried out by laser through an incision in the mother’s stomach. Surgeons block the blood vessels in the placenta joining the twins.
Left untreated the mortality rate is 100 per cent. But the surgery can improve the odds of survival to 75 to 80 per cent for at least one.
The initial operation was unsuccessful but a second attempt a
week later worked. Eli said: “We knew the operation was risky.
“Doctors told us the critical time for survival was the first five minutes after the operation, then five days afterwards too.
“Fearing I might miscarry afterwards was incredibly scary.
“Each day I would just hope and pray they would hold on.”
Eli added: “They really have battled the odds and are our double miracle.”
Twin to Twin Awareness Day is being held tomorrow to draw attention to the condition.
The Twins and Multiple Births Association said: “We’re delighted that the twins are doing so well.”
For more information, visit https://www.tamba.org.uk/ttts
lBattling against the odds... proud mum Eli, 26, happy at home with her twin daughters Tilly and Blossom, and, left, a scan of the fragile girls as babies in their mother’s womb