Two 10-month-old Fijian girls arrived in Riyadh at the end of July on what could be a life-changing journey.
Jesibel and Desisia are conjoined from below the sternum to the pelvis; they have been admitted to the King Abdullah Specialist Children’s Hospital, where a team will assess the feasibility of separation surgery.
The kingdom has built a global reputation in the specialty through the Saudi Conjoined Twins Program, which has operated since 1990. It has separated 72 pairs of siblings from 28 countries across five continents. Already this year, surgeons parted twins from Morocco, the Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, and Tanzania.
Operations are long and complex, often involving dozens of specialists and nursing staff. The Saudi government picks up the medical bill, as well as families’ travel and accommodation costs. The benefits can flow for decades: In February, Polish twins Olga and Daria visited Riyadh 21 years after undergoing successful separation surgery there.