Nearly 20 years ago, a woman from Texas was a first-time expectant mother, pregnant with a set of twin girls. However, when the doctor rescanned Crystal's ultrasound, he confirmed her worst nightmare: there were two embryos and two heartbeats, but Emily and Caitlin were fused together at the liver and chest. Conjoined twins occur once in every 200,000 live births. Back in 1996, Crystal and her husband panicked and prayed when she thought about the surgery, especially since these types of operations weren't as advanced as they are today.
At one point, doctors gave the Copelands the option to terminate the pregnancy, because they didn't know if Emily and Caitlin were conjoined at the heart, which can be fatal. When they discovered the twins only shared a liver, Crystal and her husband clung to the doctors' optimism that surgery would be successful.
Then came another obstacle: When Emily and Caitlin underwent their first surgery at just two days old, doctors also realized the organs were discharging through only one twin; they decided to wait for the girls to get bigger before separating them.
Emily and Caitlin lived as conjoined twins for 10 whole months before they went in for their final surgery to separate their bodies.
Read on to find out what happened next… This is incredible!
At 17 weeks into her first and only pregnancy, Crystal Copeland discovered her twin daughters were fused at the liver and chest, from breastbone to belly button. The year was 1995, and surgery at this level wasn't nearly as advanced as it is today.
Soon after it was discovered the twins were conjoined, Crystal and her husband were faced with the possibility that they would not survive the pregnancy. Doctors didn't know if Emily and Caitlin were conjoined at the heart, which can be fatal. But when they discovered the twins only shared a liver, Crystal and her husband knew their babies had a stronger chance at living happy, healthy lives.
After they were born via C-section, Crystal's doctors decided it best to wait 10 months to perform the surgery that would separate the twins. At the time, the Copeland family chose to keep their story private, away from the media.
After their final surgery, the twins miraculously went on to live normal lives as separate twins.
When the sisters grew into teenagers, they reunited with Dr. Kevin Lally, the incredible surgeon who helped separate them back when they were babies. In 2014, the twins turned 18 and decided to go public with their story.
Amazingly, Emily and Caitlin graduated high school at the top of their class and were co-valedictorians at Lutheran High North in Houston. Though they have no memory of ever being attached, these sisters remain as close as can be.
