Imagine this. A young teenager, 17, years old, who is fully developed. Now imagine this, the same teenager has a fully developed extra set of limbs and a pelvis. That extra set of pair is attached with chest artery. But, how can this happen?

While it is extremely rare, and has a chance of less than one case occurring per 100,000 births. Such things do happen. This is called parasitic twin.

What Is A Parasitic Twin?

It is an extremely rare type of cojoined twin where a baby is born with an underdeveloped twin attached to its body. This condition is also known as vestigial twins. The condition is very closely related to conjoined twins, where babies are connected at birth and share organs. However, the main difference is that in conjoined twins, there are two developed babies, whereas in parasitic twins, only one is fully developed, other one is underdeveloped and non functional.

In such a case, the twin who is developed is medically known as the autositic or the dominant twin. The dominant twin is healthy in most aspect but may have extra tissue, organs, or limbs from the parasitic twin.

The parasitic twin may be attached with the dominant twin through several places. The common joints are at the head, torso, chest, pelvis, buttocks, or back. In these cases, the parasitic twin is not alive and they die either in the womb or during the childbirth.

Doctors Remove Parasitic Twin

Now, let's go back to the case we referred to, where a young teenager had an extra pair of limbs attached to chest. The teenager who has not been named is from Uttar Pradesh's Unnao neighbourhood, and was treated in AIIMS, Delhi. The team of doctors successfully removed the extra set of limbs from his body.

Dr Asuri Krishna, who led the team of specialist who surgically removed the extra limbs told the BBC that only 40 to 50 cases of parasitic twins have been documented in world medical literature, and in those cases, the surgery had been attempted on children. The doctor said that without much medical literature to guide them, the team of doctors depended on "intuition, skill and knowledge".

The doctor shared that the child had two fully formed legs, buttocks and external genitalia, which weighed around 15kg "protruding from his abdomen".

How Was The Surgery Performed?

The doctor shared that first they identified how interconnected the parasitic and host twins were. The doctors took scans and found that parasitic twin was attached to the teen's breastbone. The blood was being supplied from a vessel in his chest. However, "there wasn't much connection with other main organs like the liver or kidneys," said Dr Krishna. The team also found a large cyst in the teen's abdomen.

Then the surgery was performed in two stages. In the first stage, the parasitic twin was removed. Then the cystic mass was extracted from the surrounded area. The entire surgery was completed in two and a half hours and the team of doctors included radiologists, anaesthetists, and plastic surgeons.

The biggest challenge was when the teen's blood pressure dropped as 30 to 40% of his blood flowed to the parasitic twin, however, the doctors were prepared for it and they stabilized him.

The current treatment course for high cholesterol is taking a daily tablet or regular injections over a long period. But instead, could a single treatment change the way high cholesterol is treated?

This possibility is being explored after a small first-in-human trial conducted by Cleveland Clinic found that one infusion of an experimental CRISPR gene-editing therapy lowered LDL, also called bad cholesterol, by about half and that the effect was still present a year later.

The treatment, called CTX310, is still experimental. The study involved just 15 people, so the findings are premature, not evidence that CRISPR can replace statins or other cholesterol medications.

About The Study

The Phase 1 trial included people with lipid disorders who had not responded adequately to existing medications.

Participants received a single infusion of CTX310, at different doses, and researchers followed them for 12 months.

At the highest dose, LDL cholesterol was reduced by 52.5% after one year, while triglycerides fell by 47.8%. The reductions seen earlier in the trial therefore persisted for at least 12 months.

Additionally, no serious adverse side effects related to the treatment were reported during the one-year follow-up. However, the researchers plan to continue monitoring participants for 15 years, as recommended for gene-editing therapies.

Also read: Inflammation May Be Quietly Changing Your Heart: Study Finds 43% Higher Risk Of Heart Attack & Stroke

How Does The CRISPR Treatment Work?

CTX310 operates differently compared to conventional cholesterol medicines. The treatment uses CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing to target ANGPTL3, a gene involved in regulating fats circulating in the blood.

The therapy delivers the gene-editing machinery to the liver, where it switches off ANGPTL3. Lower activity of this gene can reduce levels of LDL cholesterol and triglycerides.

The idea is that instead of using daily medicines to keep cholesterol in check, doctors could make a long-lasting genetic change.

Also read: Preeclampsia May End With Pregnancy. Your Heart Risk May Not

What Does It Mean For Statins?

Statins remain a reliable treatment approach for lowering LDL cholesterol and reducing cardiovascular risk. CTX310 has only been tested in a very small Phase 1 trial. Also, the study was primarily designed to examine the safety and explore whether the gene-editing treatment could produce a meaningful effect.

The fact that LDL remained lower after one year is promising and encouraging, but researchers still need to determine whether the treatment can safely maintain its effects over many years and, crucially, whether it reduces heart attacks, strokes and other cardiovascular events.

There is also a fundamental difference between cholesterol tablets and permanently altering a person’s DNA.

Promising Cholesterol Treatment Approach

High cholesterol is often a long-term condition. Depending on their risk, patients may need cholesterol-lowering treatment for many years.

If CRISPR becomes a reality, people may no longer have to stick to a chronic treatment strategy for managing cholesterol.

"Building upon the initial data presented in November 2025, the durability of the lipid-lowering effect was impressive," said Cleveland Clinic cardiologist Luke Laffin, M.D., first author of the study. "It is encouraging that there were no serious safety events related to CTX310 in the trial and in the year following treatment. We look forward to continuing to investigate this therapy in a larger number of patients."

At 22, the young woman had little reason to think she would soon be facing a major cardiac surgery. Newly married and otherwise healthy, she suddenly lost movement in her right arm and leg. Her family was devastated and struggled to understand how a young, healthy woman could have suffered a stroke.

Investigations revealed an unusual cause: a tumour in her heart, with a small piece believed to have broken away and travelled into the blood vessels supplying her brain. She was advised to undergo immediate open-heart surgery to remove the tumour.

But the prospect of open-heart surgery frightened her. Despite repeated counselling, she refused the procedure. Two months later, she suffered a second stroke. This time, she lost much of her ability to speak and eat, while her heart function had also fallen to 35%. Once again, open-heart surgery was advised. Once again, she refused.

Her Condition Worsened As Treatment Was Delayed

Over the next three months, her condition continued to deteriorate. She weighed only 35 kg, was weak and withdrawn, and required feeding through a Ryle's tube. Her husband continued looking for another option.

A neighbour eventually suggested that the family consult a doctor in Kolkata who performed robotic heart surgery. The family approached Dr Soumya Guha, Cardiothoracic and Vascular Surgeon, BM Birla Heart Hospital, initially through an online consultation, as the young woman was unwilling to visit a hospital.

This was an extremely high-risk case. She had already suffered two strokes, her heart function had come down to 35%, she was severely underweight at 35 kg and was physically very weak. The tumour was also large. Given her condition and the complexity of the surgery, I was initially reluctant to take up the case for robotic heart surgery. But the family was desperate, and we felt that if we could first improve her physical condition and prepare her psychologically, we could give her a chance. She needed to be built up before we could think of taking her safely through such a major procedure.

The team therefore spent time preparing her for surgery, working to improve her nutritional and physical condition while counselling her repeatedly to help her overcome her fear of surgery. Once she was considered ready, she was brought to Kolkata.

Also read: From 365 Shots To 52: How Could Lilly’s Newly-Approved Weekly Insulin Injection Change Diabetes Care

Two Tumours Found During Robotic Heart Surgery

The surgery presented another unexpected finding. What had been thought to be a single cardiac tumour turned out to be two tumours in the heart. Both were removed using robotic heart surgery.

Given her small body size, weakness and small blood vessels, the procedure required additional precautions during cardiopulmonary bypass. The team used artificial conduits to establish bypass and employed NIRS monitoring along with multiple filtration modes to support her during the procedure.

Rehabilitation Helps Her Regain Movement, Speech And Swallowing

Her recovery was also a major part of the treatment. Following surgery, she underwent extensive physical rehabilitation along with speech and swallowing therapy. Nursing, intensive care, physiotherapy, dietary support and ward care were all part of the recovery process, with the hospital administration also providing financial assistance to the family.

Today, the young woman is able to stand and walk on her own. She has begun speaking a few words and has progressed from Ryle's tube feeding to eating small amounts of mashed food.

For her family, the change has been remarkable: from watching a young woman suffer two strokes and gradually lose her ability to speak and eat, to seeing her prepare to return home on her own feet.

The surgery was only one part of this patient's journey. Given how weak she was, getting her through the operation safely was important, but helping her regain movement, speech and swallowing afterwards was equally important. This required the efforts of the surgical and anaesthesia teams, perfusionists, nursing staff, ICU and ward teams, physiotherapists, speech and swallowing rehabilitation and the dietician. The support from the hospital administration also made a difference to the family. Every one of these teams had a role to play in getting her to where she is today.

While dementia is generally associated with older age, its onset can begin much earlier, including in middle age. A new study led by an international team of researchers found that muscle loss as people age may be an important warning sign for dementia risk.

The study, published in the International Journal of Food Sciences and Nutrition, also found a surprising difference in how obesity was linked to dementia depending on a person’s age.

What Did The Study Find?

Researchers analyzed more than 80 studies examining the links between body weight, body fat, muscle health and dementia.

They found that people with sarcopenia — the loss of muscle mass and strength — had a 42 per cent higher risk of dementia.

People with obesity in middle age, or before 65, had a nine per cent higher risk of dementia. In contrast, obesity in people aged 65 and over was linked to a 17 per cent lower risk.

The findings showed that body weight alone did not tell the full story when it came to dementia risk.

“It’s not just about how much you weigh – maintaining muscle strength and function also appears to be important as we age,” said lead researcher Dr Uraiporn Booranasuksakul from Burapha University, Thailand.

“Our findings suggest losing muscle could be an important warning sign for dementia risk.”

Why Muscle Health Matters

Sarcopenia is a condition where people lose a greater amount of muscle mass, strength and physical function, often as they get older.

Dr Booranasuksakul said the findings highlighted the importance of looking after muscle health throughout life.

“Maintaining muscle is an important part of healthy ageing, and regular physical activity and good nutrition can help support muscle strength and function,” she said.

Obesity And Dementia Risk Change With Age

Corresponding author Professor Mario Siervo from Curtin University’s School of Population Health said the findings also challenged the idea that dementia risk could be understood simply by looking at a person’s weight.

“We found that obesity in middle age was linked to a higher risk of dementia, but this relationship changed in later life,” Professor Siervo said.

“This does not mean people should gain weight as they get older. Rather, it shows us that the relationship between body weight, ageing and dementia is complex.”

What About Sarcopenic Obesity?

The researchers also looked at sarcopenic obesity, where a person has both low muscle mass or function and excess body fat.

Only four studies met the criteria for this part of the analysis, and researchers found no statistically significant link between sarcopenic obesity and dementia.

Professor Siervo said more research was needed to understand whether the combination of muscle loss and excess body fat affected dementia risk.

“There is still a lot we don’t know about how changes in muscle and body fat interact over time,” Professor Siervo said.

“More long-term research is needed to understand whether having both low muscle mass and excess body fat increases dementia risk.”

A Lifelong Approach To Healthy Ageing

The researchers said the findings reinforced the importance of taking a lifelong approach to maintaining healthy body composition, including preventing unhealthy weight gain during middle age and maintaining muscle strength and function as people get older.