The twins born with DIFFERENT skin colours… and they grew in separate wombs!
- Woman had twins that grew in separate wombs — a one in 50million likelihood
- And they have different skin tones, which is only spotted in one in 500 twins
- Jade Buckingham said people often ‘don’t believe’ her children are twins
She feared she might never be a mother when doctors discovered her two wombs.
So Jade Buckingham was, understandably, ecstatic when she ended up giving birth to Cairo.
Yet the 25-year-old was even more elated when she found out she was pregnant with twins just 18 months later.
Lanaé and Lavell grew in separate wombs — a phenomenon so rare that doctors say only has a one-in-50million chance of occurring.
But that’s not the only aspect unique to Ms Buckingham’s twins.
Lanaé has a darker complexion and dark, curly hair, while Lavell has blonde hair and lighter skin.
Ms Buckingham, from Sutton-in-Ashfield in Nottinghamshire, said: ‘Sometimes when we’re out and people ask about them, they don’t believe they’re twins.
‘Sometimes I show them a picture of when they were born.’
Lanaé (left) and Lavell Buckingham (right) grew in separate wombs — a phenomenon that doctors say has a one in 50million chance of happening. But that’s not the only rare aspect of her pregnancy. Lanaé has a darker complexion and dark, curly hair, while Lavell has blonde hair and lighter skin
Jade Buckingham, their mother, said: ‘Sometimes when we’re out and people ask about them [Lanaé (right) and Lavell (left)], they don’t believe they’re twins. Sometimes I show them a picture of when they were born’
The 25-year-old (pictured with Lanaé and Lavell in the weeks after giving birth in 2018), said it took ‘a few months’ before the twins’ true skin colour differences began to show
There is a one in 500 chance of twins being born with different skin colours, if their parents are an interracial couple, figures suggest.
This is because non-identical twins — which account for two-thirds of all twins — are no more alike than any other pairs of siblings.
Skin colour is determined by parents’ genes.
Children of interracial couples receiving a combination of genes that makes their skin either lighter or darker.
Siblings and non-identical twins only share 50 per cent of their genes.
So one twin or sibling can receive genes that make their skin lighter while another may receive a group of genes that makes their skin appear darker.
The 25-year-old, who gave birth in 2018, said it took ‘a few months’ before the twins’ true skin colour differences began to show.
The unlikely event occurs in one 500 sets of twins born to mixed race couples.
Non-identical twins are no more alike than any other pairs of siblings — sharing 50 per cent of their genes. While Lanaé inherited genes that made her skin darker, Lavell received genes that made his lighter.
Ms Buckingham, a single mother and carer who is no longer with the baby’s father, only found out about her unusual anatomy following a string of miscarriages. She had suffered four by the age of 17.
She subsequently had to undergo a dilation and curettage procedure at Nottingham University Hospital, which clears the uterus lining of any tissue after a miscarriage.
During the minor operation in February 2014, doctors spotted that Ms Buckingham had two vaginal canals, known as a vaginal septum, and two wombs, a condition called uterus didelphys.
Just one in 3,000 women are thought to be born with two wombs, which occurs when a developing uterus — which starts off as two separate ducts — fails to join together.
Medics don’t yet know why the condition occurs.
But it leaves sufferers with two separate uteruses, which are attached to their own fallopian tubes — which can simultaneously release eggs that can become fertilised.
Sufferers may also have two vaginal canals, like Ms Buckingham.
Frequent miscarriages are a tell-tale sign of the condition, along with pain when having sex, heavy bleeding during periods and giving birth early.
Those with uterus didelphys usually find it no more difficult to get pregnant than those without the condition.
But sufferers struggle to carry their baby to full-term because their wombs are small, which can restrict the growth of a foetus and cause their baby to be born early.
Ms Buckingham said: ‘I was distraught because I’d always wanted to be a mum.
‘My own mum, Sheena (42) said she’d be my surrogate if I needed which was a lovely gesture but I wanted to experience pregnancy.’
However, Ms Buckingham found out she was pregnant around a year after her diagnosis and gave birth to her son Cairo, six, in February 2016.
Just 19 months later, she found out she was pregnant again.
Ms Buckingham said: ‘I was of course over the moon because I was loving being a mum to Cairo.
On April 29 2018, Lanaé (right) was born at 4.44pm weighing 3lbs 10oz, while Lavell was born one minute later weighing 5lbs 2oz (left). Despite being born six weeks early, they were perfectly healthy
The twins are now four. Ms Buckingham said: ‘I was so relieved when they [the twins, pictured] were both born and safe with me. As newborns, they looked similar but after a few months their different skin tone and features began to show through’
She said: ‘Lanaé (left) was born feet first and Lavell (right) was born head first, from that moment I knew that they were going to be polar opposites which they definitely are now’
Ms Buckingham (pictured with the twins) added: ‘When Lanaé’s hair started to grow, I noticed that she had lovely dark curls and Lavell had blonde hair and a lighter skin tone’
What is uterus didelphys?
A double uterus occurs when a developing womb — which starts off as two separate ducts — fails to join together.
The rare condition affects just 0.3 per cent of women.
Medics don’t yet know why the condition occurs.
But it leaves sufferers with two separate uteruses and fallopian tubes. Some may also have two vaginal canals and two cervixes.
Frequent miscarriages are a tell-tale sign of the condition, along with pain when having sex, heavy bleeding during periods and giving birth early.
It can cause infertility among some sufferers, as it increases the risk of miscarriage because the uterus is smaller and may restrict the growth of a foetus.
It may be diagnosed during a routine pelvic exam or during scans.
An ultrasound or MRI scan is usually required to confirm that a woman has two uteruses.
‘I’d always worried it might not happen for me and then to have him alive and well, it was everything I’d ever wanted.’
But at her three-month scan, doctors spotted she was pregnant with twins — and one was in each of her uteruses.
Medics said that the babies had formed from different eggs, with separate umbilical cords and sacs, according to Ms Buckingham.
Ms Buckingham said: ‘When I fell pregnant with the twins I was over the moon — but it was scary that they were both in different wombs.
‘I had scans every two weeks to monitor the twins’ development.’
She added: ‘I was quite worried at the time because of my condition and the previous miscarriages I’d gone through.
‘The doctors said I should treat my pregnancy the same as when I carried my son, which was a relief and I appreciated the regular scans.’
Just 22 weeks into her pregnancy, doctors told Ms Buckingham that one of the twins — her daughter Lanaé — had stopped growing.
She was given the choice of delivering both babies early, though she was warned that neither may survive, or continuing with the pregnancy but her daughter may not survive.
Ms Buckingham said: ‘It was a horrible predicament to be in but I knew I had to keep on going.
‘I decided to carry on with the pregnancy and hoped both would be OK, it was such an anxious time.’
Three months later, in April 2018, Ms Buckingham went into early labour and was rushed to hospital for an emergency C-section.
Lanaé was born at 4.44pm weighing 3lbs 10oz, while Lavell was born one minute later weighing 5lbs 2oz.
Despite being born six weeks early, they were perfectly healthy. The twins are now four.
Ms Buckingham said: ‘I was so relieved when they were both born and safe with me.
‘As newborns, they looked similar but after a few months their different skin tone and features began to show through.’
She said: ‘Lanaé was born feet first and Lavell was born head first, from that moment I knew that they were going to be polar opposites which they definitely are now.’
‘When Lanaé’s hair started to grow, I noticed that she had lovely dark curls and Lavell had blonde hair and a lighter skin tone,’ Ms Buckingham added.
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