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On July 12th Cameryn went into a routine appointment at 24 weeks with twin girls. While at the appointment the ultrasound tech noticed abnormalities in blood flow and in babies fluid levels. After hours of doctors checking babies, labs, ultrasound pictures etc.. they came to the diagnosis of TAPS, Twin anemia-polycythemia sequence (TAPS) is a rare condition that can occur in identical twins who share a placenta and blood vessels while in the womb. In TAPS, one twin (the donor) pumps too much blood to the other (the recipient), causing the donor to have anemia and the recipient to have polycythemia. After learning that their babies had this condition they were recommended to travel to John’s Hopkins for treatment. There they were given two options of either multiple blood transfusions up to 3x a week or a laser ablation procedure. When given the options they were also told within the two days between Cameryns last appointment and arriving in Baltimore the babies had also acquired TTTS. TTTS is described as: disproportionate blood supply between the fetuses. This leads to unequal levels of amniotic fluid between each fetus and usually leads to death of the undersupplied twin.
While the news of having both stage 1 TTTS and stage 2 TAPS was scary, Chet and Cameryn agreed the laser ablation surgery was the best option and scheduled it for the afternoon of Monday July 15th. After surgery they were monitoring her and babies closely for two days. Luckily, the surgery did what it was intended to do however, the laser did rupture Baby B’s sac membrane in between them causing her to join her sister in the same sac. This caused them to become “mono mono” twins. Mono mono pregnancies are high risk and can lead to severe complications for the babies. For example, the twins' umbilical cords can become entangled, which can sometimes cut off blood supply and cause the loss of one or both babies. Mono mono pregnancies also increase the chance of early labor and delivery.
Cameryn was admitted to Sentara Norfolk General Hospital on July 18th, where the team is monitoring everyone closely making sure babies level their heart rates and blood supply properly post procedure. She is unable to work at this time in the hospital for the next 7 weeks or until delivery with no guarantee of job security at the end of it all, leaving all financial responsibility to Chet who is working full time to support them.
They are reaching out to family and friends because they could use a helping hand right now. With the traveling and long hospital stays they have had to dip into savings, PTO and sick leave for work that would have been used for “maternity and paternity leave” as they do not qualify for paid leave through their jobs. Of course anything even a “share” helps.
“I wish I could say my only worry is getting both of our babies home safely but unfortunately, in today’s world it’s unrealistic for one person to support a household alone like this. I’m hoping our friends and families can at least share our story and help us get some kind of relief. I feel terrible every day Chet has to go to work then come to the hospital to sit with me until he heads home to get ready to do it all over again. I feel useless and want to help him as he’s done EVERYTHING for me these past few weeks.” Cameryn
Cameryn was admitted to Sentara Norfolk General Hospital on July 18th, where the team is monitoring everyone closely making sure babies level their heart rates and blood supply properly post procedure. She is unable to work at this time in the hospital for the next 7 weeks or until delivery with no guarantee of job security at the end of it all, leaving all financial responsibility to Chet who is working full time to support them.
They are reaching out to family and friends because they could use a helping hand right now. With the traveling and long hospital stays they have had to dip into savings, PTO and sick leave for work that would have been used for “maternity and paternity leave” as they do not qualify for paid leave through their jobs. Of course anything even a “share” helps.
“I wish I could say my only worry is getting both of our babies home safely but unfortunately, in today’s world it’s unrealistic for one person to support a household alone like this. I’m hoping our friends and families can at least share our story and help us get some kind of relief. I feel terrible every day Chet has to go to work then come to the hospital to sit with me until he heads home to get ready to do it all over again. I feel useless and want to help him as he’s done EVERYTHING for me these past few weeks.” Cameryn