A Hungarian woman, born with two uteruses, two vaginas and two cervixes, defied the odds and delivered a “miracle” baby in July 2023.
At 28 years old, Adel Varga was diagnosed with Herlyn-Werner-Wunderlich syndrome, an extremely rare condition that often can increase the risk of complications like endometriosis and infertility, according to the National Institutes of Health.
All of Varga’s life, she had one kidney, two uteruses, two cervixes, one “regular vagina” and one “blind vagina” — which means it has a very short canal.
She spent years in pain, never finding out about her rare condition until she was a young adult.
“I suffered with severely painful periods since the age of 14, and I knew something wasn’t quite right,” Varga told Caters News Agency.
She visited several doctors for answers over the years to explain the agony she felt and often got misdiagnosed.
At 20 years old, Varga said she was diagnosed with uterus didelphys, which Cleveland Clinic describes as a rare congenital condition where you’re born with two uteruses.
“I had a regular vagina and a blind vagina, as well as a second cervix,” she revealed. “It couldn’t be seen because of my blind vagina, which was full of menstruation blood.”
Varga underwent vaginal septum surgery, which cut a hole so blood could flow out of the blind vagina, reducing her excruciating pain.
“After that, my periods were far more bearable, and it also got rid of years of bacterial vaginal infection,” she added.
Although she eliminated the vaginal discomfort, she faced another issue: Finding a partner who understood her rare condition, which could prohibit her from bearing a child.
“I had been in a three-year relationship, which broke down at the start of 2020,” she said. “I believe because my ex was concerned about my condition and ability to have children.”
Months after her relationship fizzled out, she met her husband, Balázs Pór.
Four months into the relationship, the couple started to try having a baby, even though doctors were concerned about her condition.
After two years of negative pregnancy tests, the couple discovered Varga had chronic endometritis — inflammation of the uterine lining — in both of her uteruses.
But she continued to face health even more complications that left her in pain.
“I started suffering with back pain on my left side, and one day it was so bad I thought I was suffering from kidney stones, so I was rushed for an ultrasound,” she recalled.
At 28, she found out she had one kidney and was diagnosed with Herlyn-Werner-Wunderlich.
Still determined to have a child, Varga and her husband tried in vitro fertilization (IVF).
“Our first IVF attempt was successful, which we were so shocked about because even the fertility doctor said he did not think we would succeed,” she said.
Varga claims she was “terrified throughout the pregnancy” as the baby grew in her left uterus.
“It was so strange to see my belly growing on one side,” she chuckled.
The new mother delivered her baby girl, Alice, at 36 weeks on July 13, 2023, via C- section because she developed preeclampsia, a serious blood pressure condition that develops during pregnancy, according to the Cleveland Clinic.
The new mom and dad are thankful for the “opportunity to become parents” but are satisfied with being just a family of three.
“We are not planning on having another child because the whole pregnancy was very stressful,” Varga said, “and the preeclampsia is genetic, so it could easily happen again.”
