A husband and wife from Maguindanao del Sur traveled all the way to Metro Manila to seek help for their 1-year-old conjoined twins.
According to a report on “24 Oras,” Wednesday, Sultan Adbullah and Jedana Ati were overjoyed at first when they found out they were expecting twins.
But when Jedana gave birth in July last year, they found out that their babies, Dea and Isa, are conjoined twins who are attached together from their chest to their belly.
“Nung binubuhat ko sila nakatayo. Tapos ‘yung inuubo ‘yung isa, nasasaktan ‘yung isa tsaka umiiyak silang sabay,” Jedana said.
In the hopes of consulting a specialist, the family made the long trip to Manila and took shelter in a small cramped space.
Following the Department of Social Welfare and Development’s recommendation, Sultan and Jedana sought the help of the GMA Kapuso Foundation for their babies.
GMA Kapuso Foundation immediately referred the twins to a specialist and the girls underwent a 2D echo.
“Dalawa po ‘yung puso, hindi sila isa lang. Ang kaso lang, magkadikit ‘yung ventricle nila ‘yung babang bahagi ng chamber. ‘Yung isa po isa lang ang atrium niya na nakadikit sa kabilang atrium,” said pediatric surgeon Dr. Beda Espineda.
The twins will need to undergo a CT scan, which will cost more than P100,000.
“Puwedeng malaman dun kung meron siyang sharing ng puso or meron siyang magkadikit or magka-share sila ng malaking ugat,” he said.
“Sana po matulungan n’yo po ako sa anak ko po na mapaghiwalay,” Jedana said.
For those who are interested to help, the GMA Kapuso Foundation is accepting donations through bank deposits, Cebuana Lhuillier, GCash, Shopee, PayMaya, Zalora, MegaMart, Globe Rewards, Metrobank credit card, and Lazada.
For more information, visit the GMA Kapuso Foundation website.
—Carby Basina/MGP, GMA Integrated News