Fetus in Fetu: This Nagpur man, thought to be ‘Pregnant’, carried his twin for 36 years

Fetus in Fetu: This Nagpur man, thought to be ‘Pregnant’, carried his twin for 36 years

Mangalore Today News Network / News18

Nagpur, June 23, 2023: A man from Nagpur, Maharashtra who looked heavily pregnant had a rare condition known as Fetus in Fetu. Sanju Bhagat, born in 1963, is often called the “pregnant man” because of his huge bulging stomach. What looked like severe bloating would often make him stand out in his little community. But, he was unaware of the fact that he was carrying his twin sibling inside him for 36 years.

 

As a child, Bhagat appeared to be fit and healthy despite boasting a slightly more prominent stomach than most of the kids his age. It was not a concern until he entered his 20s. He used to work on a farm every day, so he can feed his family but his belly looked ballooned to an alarming size. Bhagat, who was struggling for survival, ignored the swelling and continued working. He was also often teased by his friends which also turned a concern for his family.

But in 1999, the belly bulge was pressed against his diaphragm which made it difficult for him to breathe and he was rushed to a hospital in Mumbai. Dr Ajay Mehta, who was assigned this case, assumed that Bhagat was suffering from a tumour at a first glance. However, during the surgery when the doctors were operating, instead of a massive tumour, they discovered another human being inside him. The doctor in the case in an interview said, “He just put his hand inside and he said there are a lot of bones inside.”

The doctors found limbs, some part of genitalia, some part of hair, jaws and limbs.

“We were horrified. We were confused and amazed… To my surprise and horror, I could shake hands with somebody inside. It was a bit shocking for me,” he added.

The stunned doctors initially thought that Bhagat’s case was an example of “vanishing twin syndrome” which means that his twin died during the pregnancy before being reabsorbed but later on examination and study it was found out that it was a case of “fetus in fetu”.

After the birth, the unborn twin lives like a parasite in its sibling body, it is said that typically, the host twin will realise something is wrong much sooner than Bhagat.

Sanju Bhagat reportedly “refused to look at” the “lump of hair and flesh” twin described to him after it was removed from his stomach and is now back to live his normal life.

Fetus in Fetu is a very rare condition and is considered to occur one in every 5,00,000 live births and occurs when one twin is born inside the other.