Conjoined twins from the Will County town of Braidwood who were attached at the head have been separated following a procedure at a New York City hospital, family said.
The twins’ mother, Nicole McDonald, wrote in a Friday morning Facebook post that her 13-month old sons, Jadon and Anias, were separated following 16 hours of surgery at Montefiore Medical Center. She later posted a picture of Jadon alone in a hospital bed. She said Anias was still undergoing surgery.
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“Today is a great day,” the twins’ grandmother, Christine Grosso, told the Tribune Friday. “They are two beautiful, separate babies now.”
Jadon and Anias, along with their parents, Christian and Nicole McDonald, moved to New York in February to prepare for the separation surgery at Montefiore Medical Center.
Calling it “the day of their rebirth,” Grosso, who lives in Coal City, described the boys’ journey, and their parents’ bravery and faith through it all.
The twins were born Sept. 9, 2015, with a condition known as craniopagus twins. After an in utero ultrasound revealed they were conjoined, the medical team at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago rehearsed the twins’ delivery for over 150 staff hours, Grosso said.
Nicole “never felt sorry for herself, was never negative,” Grosso said of her daughter.
“Nikki set the tone for us,” Grosso said. “Of course this has been emotional, and Nikki said that ‘no matter the outcome, it’s what God intends,’ and that took a huge load off.”
The separation procedure lasted more than 20 hours and required a team of 40 Montefiore personnel in the fields of nursing, anesthesiology, neuroradiology, neurosurgery, and plastic surgery, according to the statement issued by Montefiore.
The operation was led by pediatric neurosurgeon Dr. James Goodrich and plastic and reconstructive surgeon Dr. Oren Tepper, the statement said.
The McDonalds quit their jobs in Illinois to move indefinitely to New York. The boys will need “multiple reconstruction surgeries over their lifetime,” Grosso said.
“Their dream is to come back (to Illinois), but they have a lot ahead of them,” she said.
“They gave up really everything,” said John Taylor of Braidwood, the twins’ step-great-grandfather.
Taylor remained in Will County caring for the family dogs, while his wife, Rae Taylor, joined Grosso and the McDonalds in New York.
John Taylor said the boys have been very happy growing up, with big smiles. When one would roll over, he would take his twin over with him, Taylor chuckled.
On Facebook, Nicole McDonald described the atmosphere after the surgeries Friday as “one of celebration mixed with uncertainty.” She said Jadon did better than Anias during the procedure, adding that doctors predict he may not be able to move part of his body at first.
She said she aches “with the uncertainty of the future.”
Grosso also quit her job in order to be with her daughter’s family “as long as Nikki needs me,” and to care for their older son, Aza, 3.
The twins will remain sedated for a week in order to let the swelling go down, Grosso said. After that, doctors will have a better idea of how the boys endured the separation.
“This is an amazing day,” Grosso said. “This is an amazing story. Faith brings miracles.”
A Go Fund Me page has been established for the twins and family.
The Associated Press and contributed. Erin Gallagher is a freelance reporter.
