Several well-known sets of conjoined twins are living full, active lives today, from attending university to holding government jobs to getting married. Their stories span multiple countries and range from children still navigating serious health challenges to adults who were separated decades ago. Here’s where they are now.
Lupita and Carmen Andrade
The Andrade twins, who are joined at the torso and share a pelvis and lower body, have become one of the most visible sets of conjoined twins on social media. They live in Connecticut and work demanding schedules, logging around 50 hours a week to make ends meet.
Carmen married her husband Daniel in October 2024 on Lover’s Leap Bridge in New Milford, Connecticut. The couple met on the dating app Hinge in 2020, and Carmen says the spark started with something simple: “He asked about our dog.” The couple has spoken publicly about how they navigate intimacy while respecting Lupita’s boundaries. Despite busy work schedules, both sisters have pursued creative projects, including a role in the short film A Night at the Park.
Eman and Sanchia Mowatt
Eman and Sanchia Mowatt were separated as infants in a landmark surgery at Birmingham Children’s Hospital in the UK. Both sisters have spina bifida, and doctors were unsure whether either girl would walk. Sanchia started walking at age two, with Eman following about five weeks later. They describe their mobility now as limited but manageable: a five-minute walk can take them 20, and they use a wheelchair and a crutch when needed.
Both sisters are now at university. Sanchia is studying cyber security and learning to code as part of an effort to bring more Black women into tech. Eman is studying politics and international relations. Their younger sister Damaris, born just 11 months after them, is studying childhood, youth, and educational studies. Before university, both twins completed work experience at the same hospital where they were separated, meeting some of the surgeons who had operated on them as newborns.
Sohna and Mohna Singh
Sohna and Mohna Singh, conjoined twins from Amritsar, India, earned electrician diplomas from an Industrial Training Institute and were hired by the Punjab State Power Corporation. They work in a supply control room at a substation in Amritsar, earning a starting salary of ₹20,000 per month (roughly $240 USD). The local Red Cross Society arranged their daily transportation to work.
The twins were raised by Pingalwara, a charitable institution in Amritsar. “We are deeply thankful to the Pingalwara institution that has raised us, educated us and helped us in becoming self-dependent,” Mohna said after starting the job.
Marieme and Ndeye Ndiaye
Marieme and Ndeye Ndiaye are eight-year-old conjoined twins living in Cardiff, Wales, believed to be the only growing conjoined twins in Europe. They attend mainstream school and have formed many friendships, but their health remains fragile. Their bodies are interdependent in a particularly serious way: Marieme relies on her sister for most of the oxygen she needs to survive, meaning any decline in Ndeye’s health directly threatens Marieme’s life.
Doctors initially gave them a limited life expectancy, and the girls have already exceeded those predictions. They were recognized with a St. David Award by the Welsh government for their resilience. Despite the constant medical uncertainty, their family has focused on giving them a childhood as close to typical as possible.
Arthur and Bernardo Lima
Arthur and Bernardo Lima, twins from Brazil who were born joined at the head (a condition called craniopagus), were separated in a groundbreaking surgery that used virtual reality to plan the procedure. The operation, led by a team at the charity Gemini Untwined, was considered one of the most complex separations ever attempted. Following surgery, both boys entered a six-month rehabilitation program. Their fourth birthday marked the first time they could see each other face to face.
How Rare Conjoined Twins Are
Conjoined twins occur in roughly one in every 75,000 births, and many pregnancies end in miscarriage or stillbirth. For those who survive to birth, the prognosis depends heavily on which organs are shared. Twins who share a heart or brain face far greater risks than those who share a liver or lower body. Separation surgery success rates range from 50% to 90% depending on the complexity of shared anatomy.
The longest-lived conjoined twins on record were Ronnie and Donnie Galyon of Ohio, who died of heart failure on July 4, 2020, at the age of 68. They surpassed the previous record holders, Chang and Eng Bunker, who died in 1874 at age 62. The Galyons spent their final years living with their younger brother, having retired from decades of performing at fairs and carnivals.
Legal Identity as Conjoined Twins
One of the less obvious challenges conjoined twins face is how legal systems classify them. Questions arise around whether two people sharing a body receive one passport or two, one driver’s license or two, and how marriage licenses apply when one twin weds but the other does not. Different countries have handled these questions inconsistently, and there is no universal legal framework. Carmen Andrade’s 2024 marriage highlights how these practical questions play out in real life, as one twin navigates a romantic relationship while the other maintains her own boundaries and independence within the same body.