Our Journey
The Origin
In 2006, Gemini Untwined trustees Professors Richard Hayward and David Dunaway were referred a set of craniopagus twins, still in the womb.
Having no experience in such separation surgeries, they contacted New York colleagues, neurosurgeon Jim Goodrich and plastic surgeon David Staffenberg, who came to London to help with the first and last of four staged procedures in 2006.
Rital and Ritag
Rital and Ritag come from a family of doctors, so they had done their research prior to contacting our team. The girls arrived in the UK on April 11th 2011. They underwent their first surgery on 9th May 2011.
Safa and Marwa
Rital and Ritag come from a family of doctors, so they had done their research prior to contacting our team. The girls arrived in the UK on April 11th 2011. They underwent their first surgery on 9th May 2011.
Yigit and Derman
After 3 sets of girls, this time we had 2 boys referred to us. They were in good shape and as the charity was up and running, logistics and funding were much easier and quicker to arrange on this occasion. Professor Jeelani first saw them in August 2019 whilst on holiday in Turkey.
Israeli Twins
In March 2021, we were contacted by the team at the Soroka University Medical Center in Beersheba, Israel. There, we were introduced to our fifth set of craniopagus twins: twin girls born just months before in the local area.
Arthur and Bernardo
The separation was the most challenging to date as the boys shared vital veins in the brain. At almost four years old, Arthur and Bernardo were also the oldest craniopagus twins with a fused brain to be separated, bringing added complications.
Heitor and Augusto
In the Spring of 2023, Gemini Untwined received a second referral from the Instituto Estadual do Cérebro Paulo Niemeyer in Brazil. Heitor and Augusto, conjoined twins weighing a combined 4.2 kg, were the youngest set of twins to be separated by our team of specialists.
Minal and Mirha
Minal and Mirha were born in Pakistan, conjoined at the head and sharing vital blood vessels. Shortly after birth, they were referred to the team at Gemini Untwined.
Mercy and Goodness
Mercy and Goodness were born in Nigeria’s Ekiti State, joined at the head with fused skulls and shared brain tissue and blood vessels. At six months old, they were referred to the Gemini Untwined team.