A couple from Bristol have spoken about their pregnancy battle after discovering their babies had the same serious condition as Little Mix’s Jesy Nelson, who is currently experiencing complications while pregnant with twins. Victoria and Darren Burgess were given three frightening options after an ultrasound confirmed their unborn twins had twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS).
Little Mix singer Jesy Nelson recently found out that she was experiencing similar complications around her high-risk pregnancy. Jesy has undergone a procedure to give her twins the best chance of survival.
Darren, aged 33, and wife Victoria, 35, were overjoyed to be expecting, but when they attended their 12-week scan, they were in for a shock. Victoria had no idea that she was expecting two babies at the time, let alone that she was facing serious complications and risks.
Victoria told The Mirror: “It wasn’t in my mind that it could be twins, not at all. I just thought I knew my own body. We don’t have any twins in our families, so I didn’t even think it would be an option.”
Darren said: “I saw the sonographer look quite quickly over the whole area. I thought I saw a second embryo. The measurements were all done for one baby, and then the sonographer said, ‘here’s baby number two’. Victoria’s jaw hit the floor.”
Joy turns to shock
But when the pair went for the 16-week scan the joy turned to shock. One twin had no visible kidneys or bladder and the other had excessive fluid in their amniotic sac.
Doctors diagnosed Victoria’s pregnancy with twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS), a life-threatening condition that affects around 10 to 15 percent of identical twins who share a placenta. The couple were told they had three options: undergo specialist laser surgery, do nothing and risk complications, or terminate the pregnancy.
The mum-to-be turned to the Twins Trust website for support and information, she read about other families who had faced TTTS. At that point she’d not heard of the condition. She was feeling “very lonely and confused”, but the Twins Trust charity helped her and Darren through the tough time.
Victoria underwent laser surgery to save her twin babies, the couple had to act fast as one of the twin’s sac was getting “bigger and bigger.” But although the procedure was successful, she went through many complications before the births, including bleeding and fluid loss, leading to many hospital visits.
Weeks in the neonatal intensive care unit
The twins were born at 34 weeks via C-section in September 2023 with 26 medical staff to hand. One trainee nurse fainted in the theatre. But baby boys Ezra and Arlo entered the world healthily, thanks to the life-saving laser procedure Victoria had while pregnant.
The twins fought through their early challenges, which meant weeks in the neonatal intensive care unit, but they are now thriving. Victoria, who praised the staff at Musgrove Hospital, in Taunton, where she had the boys, said she’s determined not to let the challenges of having twins hold her back.
The couple, who also completed the Twins Trust antenatal course to help prepare for their journey, are now focused on raising awareness of TTTS to help other families. Darren advised other parents facing similar diagnoses to always ask questions and hold on to hope.
He said: “We just kept on hoping. We hung onto that hope and had positive outcomes.”
Victoria said: “We just want to say thank you to Twins Trust for being there for us when we really needed the support. It was quite a lonely and worrying time.”
You can find out more about the Twins Trust here