Owen and Gavin Cassellius were diagnosed with twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome while they were still in their mother’s womb. Although in most of the cases at least one child dies, the two struggled to survive.

They were practically sharing the same placenta and both could have died because they shared the same blood vessels too. One boy was receiving too much blood and the other too little.

But doctors have managed to perform a life saving procedure called fetoscopic laser ablation. They inserted a tiny scope into Jeana Cassellius’ abdomen and using this procedure they were able to see inside her uterus and managed to cauterize the shared blood vessels between the babies. Using these tiny cameras and lasers, the surgeons at Abbott Northwestern and Children’s Hospital in Minneapolis were able to save the twins.

Doctors William Block and Brad Feltis have only performed about six experimental procedures of this type. The life saving procedure lasted 90 minutes and took place in July.

The twins were born Oct.22. Both Gavin and Owen were born with nearly the same weight - 5 pounds, 9 ounces and 5 pounds, 4 ounces.
The twins’ parents, Jeana and Jeff Cassellius said they had all the confidence into the doctors and they wanted to stay positive all this time.

Twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome occurs in about three percent of all twins. One twin receives too little blood through the shared blood vessels of their placenta, the other too much. The surgery called fetoscopic laser ablation increases the chance of survival for one or both babies.