Smaller Twin Doctors Wanted Aborted Saves Sister's Life

When doctors told Leah McBride to terminate one of her twin daughters at 21 weeks pregnant, she refused to choose between them. That decision may have saved both their lives.

Leah's twins had twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome, a dangerous condition where blood flow between babies becomes severely imbalanced. One twin donates nutrients to the other, creating a life-threatening size difference.

By 21 weeks, tiny Poppy was 48 percent smaller than her sister Winnie. Doctors worried Poppy would have a heart attack from giving away too many nutrients, while Winnie risked a stroke from receiving too much.

Leah sought a second opinion at Memorial Hermann Hospital in Houston, where surgeons corrected the blood flow imbalance. The surgery worked, but at 27 weeks her water broke and doctors scrambled to delay delivery with steroids.

At 31 weeks, Poppy's heart rate started dropping and wouldn't stabilize. Doctors delivered both girls on May 24, 2019.

What happened next shocked everyone. Poppy, born at just 1 pound 11 ounces, was perfectly healthy. Her heart was fine.

Winnie, the larger twin at 3 pounds 8 ounces, was the one in critical condition. She had underdeveloped lungs and needed emergency brain surgery at 14 days old to relieve dangerous fluid buildup.

Sunny's Take

The doctors told Leah something remarkable: they believe Poppy's fluctuating heart rate wasn't a sign she was in trouble. It was a distress signal that triggered the early delivery because Winnie wouldn't have survived much longer in the womb.

"I think your tiny twin saved her sister's life," they told her plainly. Poppy had been sending the alarm that got both girls out in time.

Today, the girls are thriving at age 6. Winnie was reading books from memory by age 3. Poppy is still smaller than her twin, but she still watches over her sister closely.

When Leah tried separating their beds, both girls refused. They sleep side by side, just like they started their lives together in the womb, with one sister already looking out for the other.