Iranian Siamese twins at 30, hope for a lease of life
It is the chance of a lifetime for determined Iranian twins Ladan and Laleh Bijani to finally be separated after 29 years of being joined at the head
It is the chance of a lifetime for determined Iranian twins Ladan and Laleh Bijani to finally be separated after 29 years of being joined at the head.
But the confronting reality is that the historic operation they have opted to undergo in Singapore next month could kill them.
The Bijani twins have separate bodies, limbs and brains but they share a single skull cavity and an artery that supplies both brains.
Although other operations have been successfully carried out to separate babies joined at the head, no one has ever dared try the incredibly difficult surgery on adults.
Ladan and Laleh missed the opportunity to be separated when they were young and have been on a relentless quest ever since, to find a group of doctors willing to match the courage they possess.
Doctors in Germany refused to operate on them in 1996, warning that the surgery would likely kill one or both of them, or leave them in a vegetative state.
Seven years later, some medical advances have been made that have slightly improved the odds of their survival but what appears to have been the most influential factor in convincing surgeons here to perform the operation is the twins’ determination and optimism.
“We gave them the risks very bluntly,†the co-leader of the surgical team, neurosurgeon Keith Goh, said.
“We tried very hard to change their minds because it would be the easiest thing to do... but we couldn’t.â€
Despite admitting to nerves, Ladan and Laleh appeared before a media scrum in Singapore on Wednesday and displayed the same qualities that Goh and his medical team had witnessed since the twins arrived in Singapore last November.
“Hello, thank you for coming,†Ladan said with a smile and a shy wave as they walked into a wall of cameras to begin the press conference at Raffles Hospital, where the four-day operation will take place in the first week of July. “We don’t have any fear about the surgery,†Ladan said when asked about the possibility the operation may kill her and Laleh.
“We feel happy, excited and a little bit nervous, especially me.â€
Laleh, who was more subdued in front of the media, said she and her sister had been going through extensive physical and mental preparations to be ready for the operation, including psychological counselling and readings of the Koran.
“We believe God will help us. We go to the gym every day to do exercises and we think positively. Mentally we must think positively,†Laleh said.
Dressed in matching black and fawn suits and sharing a light brown scarf held together with a gold broach, the twins presented themselves as confident, ambitious and thoughtful young women.
Ladan broke into laughter at her own jokes and refused to answer any questions she felt were too personal. Both spoke in halting, but well-constructed English, a language they only started learning two years ago.
The sisters are graduates in law from Tehran University. Ladan caused much mirth among the otherwise somber journalists when she conceded that they had talked to each other during exams. “Do you mean we cheated?†she asked.
Explaining why they wanted to go ahead with the operation, the twins drew on a mixture of the most simple and complex examples of their lives together.
With the twins’ scalps joined at the side, they cannot draw their eyes on each other.
“We (would) like to see each others’ face without the mirror,†Laleh said.
Ladan echoed the sentiments of her sister but also spoke of her endless frustration at Laleh’s love of playing computer games.
“I like reading Iranian newspapers on the internet, e-mailing friends... Laleh likes playing games for hours,†Ladan said.
Laleh then stressed: “We are individual people, we have different ideas.â€
She followed her sister into law school even though she wanted to study journalism, and she now wants to pursue a career in the media.
Ladan dreams of following through on her legal training and working as a lawyer.
But shortly after talking about their career goals, they checked themselves and quickly refocused on their immediate fate.
“We just think about successful surgery. We don’t have any dreams independent of surgery,†Ladan said.
In a typical show of strength, they shunned any attempts to pity them. “We are not in pain when we walk or sleep. We don’t have any pain. We just want surgery because we have plans to do,†Ladan said.
And they emphasised that despite their desire to be separated, their life had not been tragic.
“We have enjoyed being together but we want to be together separately,†Ladan said.
AFP
But the confronting reality is that the historic operation they have opted to undergo in Singapore next month could kill them.
The Bijani twins have separate bodies, limbs and brains but they share a single skull cavity and an artery that supplies both brains.
Although other operations have been successfully carried out to separate babies joined at the head, no one has ever dared try the incredibly difficult surgery on adults.
Ladan and Laleh missed the opportunity to be separated when they were young and have been on a relentless quest ever since, to find a group of doctors willing to match the courage they possess.
Doctors in Germany refused to operate on them in 1996, warning that the surgery would likely kill one or both of them, or leave them in a vegetative state.
Seven years later, some medical advances have been made that have slightly improved the odds of their survival but what appears to have been the most influential factor in convincing surgeons here to perform the operation is the twins’ determination and optimism.
“We gave them the risks very bluntly,†the co-leader of the surgical team, neurosurgeon Keith Goh, said.
“We tried very hard to change their minds because it would be the easiest thing to do... but we couldn’t.â€
Despite admitting to nerves, Ladan and Laleh appeared before a media scrum in Singapore on Wednesday and displayed the same qualities that Goh and his medical team had witnessed since the twins arrived in Singapore last November.
“Hello, thank you for coming,†Ladan said with a smile and a shy wave as they walked into a wall of cameras to begin the press conference at Raffles Hospital, where the four-day operation will take place in the first week of July. “We don’t have any fear about the surgery,†Ladan said when asked about the possibility the operation may kill her and Laleh.
“We feel happy, excited and a little bit nervous, especially me.â€
Laleh, who was more subdued in front of the media, said she and her sister had been going through extensive physical and mental preparations to be ready for the operation, including psychological counselling and readings of the Koran.
“We believe God will help us. We go to the gym every day to do exercises and we think positively. Mentally we must think positively,†Laleh said.
Dressed in matching black and fawn suits and sharing a light brown scarf held together with a gold broach, the twins presented themselves as confident, ambitious and thoughtful young women.
Ladan broke into laughter at her own jokes and refused to answer any questions she felt were too personal. Both spoke in halting, but well-constructed English, a language they only started learning two years ago.
The sisters are graduates in law from Tehran University. Ladan caused much mirth among the otherwise somber journalists when she conceded that they had talked to each other during exams. “Do you mean we cheated?†she asked.
Explaining why they wanted to go ahead with the operation, the twins drew on a mixture of the most simple and complex examples of their lives together.
With the twins’ scalps joined at the side, they cannot draw their eyes on each other.
“We (would) like to see each others’ face without the mirror,†Laleh said.
Ladan echoed the sentiments of her sister but also spoke of her endless frustration at Laleh’s love of playing computer games.
“I like reading Iranian newspapers on the internet, e-mailing friends... Laleh likes playing games for hours,†Ladan said.
Laleh then stressed: “We are individual people, we have different ideas.â€
She followed her sister into law school even though she wanted to study journalism, and she now wants to pursue a career in the media.
Ladan dreams of following through on her legal training and working as a lawyer.
But shortly after talking about their career goals, they checked themselves and quickly refocused on their immediate fate.
“We just think about successful surgery. We don’t have any dreams independent of surgery,†Ladan said.
In a typical show of strength, they shunned any attempts to pity them. “We are not in pain when we walk or sleep. We don’t have any pain. We just want surgery because we have plans to do,†Ladan said.
And they emphasised that despite their desire to be separated, their life had not been tragic.
“We have enjoyed being together but we want to be together separately,†Ladan said.
AFP