Foetus Inside Foetus! Rare Pregnancy Reported In Maharashtra: A One-in-Five-Lakh Case

You may be familiar with various types of pregnancies like twin pregnancies, heteropaternal superfecundation, ectopic pregnancies, and cryptic pregnancies. However, there's an incredibly rare condition known as foetus in foetu (FIF), also known as the vanishing twin syndrome, which occurs in just 1 in 5 lakh cases. The first widely known case in India was reported from Nagpur, Maharashtra and was that of a 36 year old man who came to be known as The Pregnant Man. The phenomenon is truly astonishing and some may even find it shocking. What you are going to read next is something you may have never imagined. 

A 32-year-old pregnant woman from Maharashtra has been detected with a foetus in foetu, a condition that happens in multiple pregnancies, in which a malformed foetus/foetuses are found within the body of the healthy, surviving foetus. Yes, you read that right. It is basically a foetus within a foetus. The congenital anomaly is so rare that there are less than 200 cases reported in the world so far. 

Obstetrician and Gynaecologist, Dr Prasad Agarwal shared, “I was lucky and vigilant enough to notice something very unusual with this baby, which is almost 35 weeks, grossly normal growing foetus with a few bones and foetus-like structure in its abdomen”

“It struck me immediately that this is not normal. It was ‘foetus in foetu’, one of the rarest cases in the world. We had asked for a second opinion and the case was confirmed by radiologist Dr Shruti Thorat,” he added.

8 foetuses Found Within A 21-Day-Old Baby.

Surprisingly, this is not the first case in India. In November 2022, a case was reported in Ranchi, in which not one but 8 foetuses were found within the abdomen of a 21-day-old baby. The doctors who performed the surgery shared that the size of the foetuses ranged from 3 centimeters to 5 centimeters and were all found enclosed in a cyst. This is the only case reported in the world so far. 

Astonishing Case Of ‘The Pregnant Man’

Born in 1963 in Nagpur, Sanju Bhagat lived 36 years of his life being referred to as ‘Pregnant Man’ owing to the huge size of his belly that somewhat resembled that of a pregnant woman. By the time he reached his 20s, Sanju did not experience any unusual symptoms apart from the prominent belly size, however, soon the size started increasing at an accelerated pace, making it difficult to carry out normal day-to-day tasks. 

Sanju was taken to a hospital in Mumbai, where it was revealed that he was indeed carrying another human being, though it wasn’t his baby, but his malformed twin. Doctors extracted the malformed remains. Lack of enough information and knowledge about the condition made it more challenging for Sanju and his family, however, after the treatment, he resumed work and led a normal life. 

Do you know about any such rare pregnancy phenomenon? If so, share it with us in the comments.