Man, 30, gives 'birth' to his twin

Twincredible ... Gavin Hyatt keeps his brother in a jar

BARRY CLACK

By EMMA MORTON
Health Editor

A PLUMBER reeled in agony as his stomach ruptured — and the embryonic remains of his TWIN spilled out.

The lumpy mass forced its way out after lying inside Gavin Hyatt’s abdomen since he was born 30 years ago.

Pain ... lump pushed through Gavin's skin

In a scene echoing the horror movie Alien, Gavin staggered into his GP’s surgery bleeding from his belly button.

His stunned GP Dr Joe Santos said: “It was like something from Alien. I didn’t believe Gavin when he said something was coming out of his belly button until I saw him.”

Puzzled

Medics said the growth was a parasitic twin — Gavin’s identical brother who died in the womb early in their mum’s pregnancy.

The 4cm foetus then became embedded in Gavin’s tissue and stayed in his stomach for the next 30 years.

There are just a handful of cases worldwide — with the majority reported in Asia.

Former firefighter Gavin, of Witney, Oxfordshire, said: “Four hospital doctors had previously examined me and were all puzzled by the lump.

“Some thought it was a cyst, others an in-grown hair.

“Then one said it could be my undeveloped identical twin that I absorbed at a very early stage. I feel absolutely fine now but it has not sunk in yet that I could have had a twin brother. I have him in a jar at home and I call him little Gav. I haven’t told many people. I feel like a bit of a freak.”

Gavin’s amazing “birth” is like the scene from 1979 movie Alien — where a monster explodes from an astronaut’s chest. The 6ft plumber’s real-life ordeal followed a month of excruciating pain.

Firefighter ... Gavin in his old job

BARRY CLACK

He revealed: “At first I thought I had been stung by something due to the burning pain in my belly button.

“But there was no sign of anything on the skin. Then I felt a large lump just above my navel, which was so painful that I nearly passed out.

“I couldn’t sleep and made an emergency appointment with the GP the next day.

“There was a red patch around the area which was hot to the touch. Dr Santos felt it and said it was a hernia.”

Gavin, who has four children with wife Kate, then spent a week in and out of hospital. An operation at Oxford’s John Radcliffe Hospital was cancelled at the last minute and Gavin went home.

But he later felt a stabbing pain near his belly button.

Lifting his shirt, he saw that he was bleeding as the lump pushed through his skin.

Gavin, who drove himself to his local surgery despite the shooting pain, added: “I had the seat tilted right back and gritted my teeth.

Patch

“Dr Santos was shocked at the sight of what came out.

“He told me: ‘I have amputated limbs and done all sorts, but I have never seen anything like this in my life.’

“He put it in a jar and put a surgical patch over my navel, then got straight on the phone to the emergency department.”

Dr Santos added: “This is incredibly rare. Gavin’s weight has changed recently so that is why it might have pushed through. But otherwise he is fit and well and happy that he has his little friend.”

Sphere: Related Content