Who could ever forget the stars of Sweet Valley High? The hit show about twin high schoolers, Elizabeth and Jessica, was every '90s kid's favorite after-school watch. The twins were played by real-life twins Brittany and Cynthia Daniel.
The twins are in the headlines again because Brittany just welcomed a baby, and she recently opened up to People about her struggle to get pregnant and how ultimately her sister stepped in to help out in a completely life-changing (and life-making) way.
Brittany was having a terrible time trying to get pregnant. That's because she battled stage 4 cancer in 2011. She underwent a rigorous treatment of chemotherapy during that time and luckily was able to pull through.
Brittany beat the cancer, but the chemotherapy took a serious toll on her ability to conceive. "I went to meet with an IVF doctor — he said, 'yeah, you're in two attempts at trying to retrieve eggs,'" Brittany revealed. "He said, 'I don't see this happening for you.' It was pretty devastating."
That's when Brittany's sister, Cynthia, agreed to help by donating one of her eggs. "I did tell the doctor, 'I have a twin sister,' and he was like, 'What? Is she healthy?' I said, 'Oh yeah she's so healthy, she has three kids,' — and he said: 'We should bring her in.'"
Brittany said that Cynthia didn't have to think twice about it. "I don't even remember hesitation — like, 'of course I will, yeah I'll come in,'" she says her sister said.
The doctor also shared a really positive sentiment about using her sister's egg. "The doctor said 'you guys share the same DNA so it's literally like your child — we can't get any closer to a baby being your own,'" Brittany revealed.
Brittany says she desperately wanted to carry the baby, but that wasn't in the cards, either. After three failed embryo transfers, she decided to bring in another woman to carry the baby. Now Brittany is thrilled that her daughter, fittingly named Hope, has come into her life.
Brittany wants her story to remind other women struggling to conceive that it's possible.
"It almost doesn't seem real that Brittany has her baby," her twin says. "It's such a small act of kindness that created such a miracle child."
