Baby with stomach ‘lump’ found to have half-formed TWIN inside with head of hair

A two-month-old baby shocked doctors after they discovered the foetus of a twin inside him.

The young boy was admitted to the hospital with “abdominal swelling and a palpable mass” measuring 8x12cm on his stomach.

Doctors initially suspected a Wilms tumour or neuroblastoma as potential underlying causes – both of which typically present as large abdominal masses closely related to the kidneys – but were stunned to discover the true reason for his discomfort.

A contrast-enhanced abdomen CT scan found a ‘lesion’ with soft tissue, fat, fluid and bone components – with an apparent spine, ribs, facial bones and lower limbs.

Doctors discovered a foetus inside a 2-month-old baby in a rare fetus in fetu case - fewer than 200 reported worldwide - after surgery in Kabul, Afghanistan. — Selected axial, coronal soft tissue window, and axial bone window images demonstrate well-defined heterogeneous lesion in the left upper quadrant, resulting in the displacement of bowel loops as well as major abdominal vessels. (Picture: Jam Press)

Under general anaesthesia, the tot underwent surgery to remove the mass, which doctors found was contained within a membranous sac, supplied by major vessels from the aorta.

They were able to successfully separate it from the boy and, upon opening the sac, doctors found an “incompletely formed foetus”, reports Need To Know.

The foetus was found to have a head of hair, well-developed spine, upper limbs with fingers, and lower limbs with feet and toes.

The case is an example of ‘fetus in fetu’ – a rare congenital anomaly which occurs when the vertebrate foetus develops inside the body of its twin sibling.

There are fewer than 200 cases reported to date.