Pregnant with twins discovers that her daughters are Siamese and share just one heart: ‘I only saw it in movies’

At the same time as she experiences the happiness of being a mother once again, Luciane Setene, 38 years old, tries to process the information that her new daughters are Siamese twins, connected at the chest and share one heart.

Currently, five months pregnant with Siamese twins, the clerk shares feelings of joy and anguish. Luciane was treating an ovarian cyst when she discovered she was pregnant with twins. In the first ultrasound, the doctor identified two fetuses, but only one heartbeat.

“I started my prenatal care like any mother. I went to the regular post. Through the first ultrasound exams at the clinic in my city. At this moment we saw something different, there were two twin babies, but there were no two beats. Then we looked for a more detailed ultrasound, only at this point did we see that it was something different, rare”, explains Luciane.

After the news, Luciane left Rio Verde towards Campo Grande. The journey of more than 200 km is completed almost every month to receive specialized medical care at Santa Casa in the capital.

In g1, the mother of twins Arielly and Allany, as they will be called, shares the specifics of the pregnancy in an anesthetized way. In addition to having only one heart, girls are fed by a single umbilical cord. In Luciane’s belly, the twins are connected at the chest.

“I confess, I’m scared. The case is rare, my daughters are joined at the thorax, they have only one heart and they feed through a single umbilical cord. The other organs are perfect, there are no problems. Each has its own unique organ and limbs, only the heart is divided.”

Anguish and happiness

Luciane is still trying to understand her daughters’ rare condition. To g1, the mother says she is in the process of assimilating the high-risk pregnancy and frequent medical monitoring.

“The first feeling I had was being scared. At first I didn’t really believe it, I was very scared, apprehensive. I knew they were twins, but I didn’t expect this whole situation”, explains Luciane.
On the eve of six months of pregnancy, Luciane says she feels distressed about the situation she is experiencing. “We sleep, but we don’t sleep at the same time. My psychology was very shaken, complicated. I don’t know how to explain it yet, the impact is huge.”

“I only saw this situation of Siamese twins in movies and on TV. We don’t expect to go through all of this, but I’m still going strong and hoping for the best for my daughters,” she comments after a long sigh.
Siamese twins are a rare phenomenon. It is estimated that there is one case for every 200,000 births. Each year, only a few separations are carried out in the world.

High-risk pregnancy

As pregnancy is high risk, visits to the doctor are frequent. The birth should take place in February next year, when the pregnancy will reach its seventh month.

Luciane provides obstetric monitoring at Santa Casa de Campo Grande. Exams are almost weekly to check how the babies are doing. To cover the expenses, which are many, the mother receives help from close friends and ran a campaign on social media to raise money.

Regarding her daughters’ future, Luciane’s idea is to live each day at once. The mother still doesn’t know if her daughters will be separated soon after birth.

“The procedures will only be considered after my daughters are born. The separation surgery will take place later, it will depend on how their health will be. I remain distressed and hoping for the best for my girls.”