RP records first fetus within fetus case, but ‘twins’ die in surgery
One-and-a-half-month-old Eljie Buccat Millapes was found to have a “twin” which developed inside his young body.
Doctors at the
It was the first case of a fetus within a fetus in the country and the 88th recorded case in the world, according to government pediatrician Myrjhonahlyn Rulloda, quoting records of the
“We were amazed,” senior pediatrics ward resident Dr. Ferdinand Ganggangan added.
Rulloda said Millapes was diagnosed to have developed a mass in his abdomen, which findings later indicated was a human female fetus.
Pathologist Aloysius Llanes, chief of the Anatomic Pathology department of the BGHMC, declared that the mass was “grossly human because of the skull and vertebrae.”
Rulloda said the fetus retrieved from Eljie’s abdomen had a complete set of ears, extremities, and vital organs. The fetus weighed a kilo and had a beating heart but died after being taken out, she said.
Eljie was admitted to the hospital on June 30, over a month after he was born on May 11, because of complaints of abdominal enlargement and jaundice, Rulloda said.
Rulloda explained that the other baby was simply Eljie’s twin sister that didn’t develop well while inside their mother’s womb. Eljie became the dominant twin and eventually overtook the other fetus in its development.
Surgery was initially scheduled after Eljie was stabilized following an exploratory laparotomy, an operation on the belly.
But complications surfaced and the baby’s abdomen started to enlarge. “So we did an X-ray again and re-scheduled another exploratory laparotomy.”
It turned out a portion of Eljie’s small intestines was decaying.
“On July 10, we removed the ‘non-viable’ small intestines but we were really apprehensive that bigger problems like infection would arise,” Rulloda said.
Antibiotics were introduced and doctors transfused blood because his blood platelets were decreasing at an alarming rate.
“We even supported the patient with intravenous fluids,” Rulloda said.
On the ninth day post operation, Eljie was already breast feeding, which the attending physicians said was a good sign.
But four days later, Eljie died “due to systemic infection,” Ganggangan said.
“Chances of long survival were really nil,” Ganggangan explained, pointing out that they were forced to remove the small intestines of the boy which had been affected by the abnormal growth of the other “twin.”
Ganggangan admitted Eljie could not have gotten sufficient nutrients without his small intestines.
Eljie was brought home to Bolinao, Pangasinan by his parents.
The baby’s mother, Lorna Millapes, 26, said she gave birth to Eljie, her second child, with the help of a midwife.
Millapes claimed she noticed Eljie’s stomach was getting bigger, especially after being breastfed.
She sought medical help in their town but doctors advised her to take her son to BGHMC to confirm their initial suspicions that the child had a kidney problem.
On June 30, Eljie was confined at BGHMC where the diagnosis was made that he had a parasitic twin growing inside his body.
Although amazed, Millapes said she accepted her son’s fate.
Millapes claimed that in one instance at the hospital while they were asleep last July 21, a nurse came into the ward and injected something in her baby using a big hypothermic needle.
Millapes claimed she learned of the incident from their roommates at the pay ward.
“Parang sinadyang pinatay yong anak ko (As if they intentionally killed my son),” she said.
Millapes claimed her son was already recovering two weeks after the operation.
Millapes added she and her husband were demanding the body of the “other twin,” but doctors refused to turn the fetus over.
“Our other problem is they refused to give us the twin girl and they (doctors) claimed they have already dismembered her body,” she said.
She accused the doctors of preserving the fetus for experiment without her consent.
According to Millapes, the doctors even refused to give them copies of the X-ray and CT scan results.
“It’s really hurting. He survived two operations and he suddenly died,” Millapes said.
“Then when he was operated on, each doctor, about five of them, had video,” she added.
Millapes said the hospital employees got mad at them after they gave media interviews about the fate of her son.
Millapes said they only wanted to give a decent burial to the twins but in this case, only Eljie was laid to rest.
The Millapes family urged Health Secretary Francisco Duque to intervene in their case.
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