Mother Has Miraculous Twins After Refusing To Abort One

Kloe Matthew, 31, and her husband Michael, 35, of Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, were forced to make a difficult decision after their twins were diagnosed with twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome while she was 17 weeks pregnant.

The situation develops when one fetus consumes more nutrients than the other, endangering their lives.

The bereaved couple was given the option of either cutting the chord of the smaller twin and giving the bigger one a better chance of life or undergoing laser surgery, which may have saved them both but placed both of their lives in jeopardy.

Kloe went for the operation after only three hours of deliberation, which was a success, but when she went into premature labor at 27 weeks pregnant, the twins had to battle for their lives again.

Eighteen months later, James and Michael Matthews are growing - and, predictably, they share a very close relationship.

Kloe and Matthew were delighted to learn they had twins after trying for a baby for years and suffering a miscarriage.

Their delight quickly changed to dread when they discovered the boys suffered from twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome.

Kloe knew she had to give both of her kids a fighting chance, so she urged physicians to proceed with the laser operation, despite her smaller twin's 10% chance of survival.

Kloe, said: 'I've seen the bond from the start - they always want to be close to each other and can't leave each other alone.

'It was never a choice to choose between my boys because we were given this chance for a reason.

'To be asked to consider cutting the cord of my little Michael had to be the worst day of my life - it felt like we had been written off.

'After everything we had already been through - I knew that they both deserved a chance to fight.

'There was something that told me to give them both a chance and they needed to be together so I decided to save them both and go for the laser treatment.'

'They could either cut the cord of the smallest twin to give the other the best chance of survival or receive a laser surgery through the bump and placenta which would save both boys - however there was only a 10% survival rate for smaller twin.

'The boys had spent all that time together inside, it is only right that they should be together.'

Kloe discovered her boys had twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome during a prenatal ultrasound at Rosie Addenbrookes Hospital in Cambridge.

She was rushed to King's College Hospital in London and given only three hours to make the tough decision over the lives of her unborn children.

Kloe said: 'I had just three hours to make the decision and an hour later I was in surgery to save them both.

'After the surgery, I was very unwell but I knew I had made the right decision.

'A lot of people go into labour 10-12 weeks after the surgery and my boys had done it 10 weeks to the day after the procedure.

'I was really unwell and thought I had covid because I woke up all fluey, but it was actually the boys on their way.

'I wasn't feeling well and on top of that I was worrying about my boys because they were coming out so early.'

James and Michael Matthews were born prematurely at only 27 weeks, weighed only 1.6lbs and 2.6lbs, respectively, and spent 16 weeks struggling for their lives in intensive care on January 28th, last year.

Khloe said: 'I was so poorly myself, I didn't get to see my boys for 14 hours after they were taken to the NICU.

'It was such an awful time - I didn't know if they were going to survive and I just wanted to meet my babies.

'It was amazing to see them but absolutely terrifying at the same time.

She continued to say, 'James weighed just 2lb 6oz and my little Michael was only 1lb 6oz.

'They were so tiny, they could fit into my hands but little Michael didn't even fit in his Dad's hand.

'They've had the closest bond since - one won't sleep without the other in the room now!

'Their relationship is like no other, although I can see them starting to enjoy teasing each other now.

The cute twins were finally allowed to come home for the first time after struggling for their life in hospital for four months due to numerous infections and difficulties.

Kloe and Michael were pleased that their miraculous twins had survived beyond all chances.

A year later, the couple married in a ceremony attended by the twins, who are now robust and healthy.

Kloe added: 'To have my boys there at our wedding in their little tuxedos really cemented everything after we had been through so much.

'Now the boys have just had their first birthday and to think we never thought we would get to seeing them crawling and being mischievous.

'They're best of friends and they've been through so much together already I'm excited to see how their bond will develop.' she said.