Couple is only allowed three IVF cycles sponsored by the NHS. During pregnancy, the situation seemed so hopeless that at one point, medical professionals had to use a laser to cut one of the babies’ blood vessels in order to rescue the other three. Gionni, Peppe, and Melina, twin girls, who were born three MONTHS early, were the lightest of the four, weighing only 2 lbs 4 oz. The 50-year-old priest Father Giovanni Sapia said: “Last Christmas was awful. We couldn’t take family pictures, so we had to spend the time watching the babies in the incubator. This year is entirely unique. Having the entire family together is wonderful. In 2010, producer Giovanni met 33-year-old Anna Savchenko. They moved in together to start a relationship after six months of dating family. After a year of trying for a baby, fertility tests showed it was difficult for them to conceive naturally family. After a year of trying for a baby, fertility tests showed it was difficult for them to conceive naturally.
After being directed to fertility doctors at St. Margaret’s Hospital in Epping, Essex, the couple began the first of three NHS-funded free IVF cycles in September 2014. Last June, it went on to its final course after learning that the first two courses had failed, which was “extremely heartbreaking.” Former nanny Anna remembers: “We both prayed for a miracle because we knew we could never afford private therapy.” Giovanni and I hugged and cheered when we saw the cross on the pregnancy test that was positive. Giovanni and Anna’s doctor informed them that they were expecting quadruplets four weeks later because the eggs extracted from Anna had split in two. We were unable to believe the news, she remarked. We hit the, well, rollover jackpot, because we’re going to have four kids. We went home to soak but were warned there could be complications because there were too many babies.”
Specialists at King’s College Hospital in London informed the couple that a twin had selective growth restriction and would not survive at week 16 on October 20, 2016. On that day, we were informed that in order to save the other kids, I need urgent laser surgery to sever the blood connection connecting Mia and her sister. Although I was shocked and afraid, I was ready. After the 40-minute procedure, Mia’s heart abruptly started to beat once more. At 25 weeks, doctors transferred Anna to King’s before sending her to Addenbrooke Hospital in Cambridge because they felt she was too far away for additional operations. At 27 weeks and 3 days along, on December 15, Anna’s water broke, necessitating an urgent cesarean section. “ Mia the baby had less than a 1% chance of surviving labor, but her heart was still beating weakly and trying to hold on,” she recalls. At 7:36, 7:37, 7:38 and 7:40 on December 16, 2016, the quartets were delivered.
Melina was the first to be born, weighing 2 pounds, followed by Gionni (2 pounds, 4 ounces), Peppe (2 pounds, 1 ounce), and miraculous baby Mia (13 ounces, or less than a sack of rice), according to Anna. The problem continues, and baby Mia’s life is still in danger. The doctors may try to puncture her tummy to see if the air would escape and make it easier for her to breathe, but she filled up, contrary to what we were informed. They expanded the perforation and informed us they would perform surgery to determine the root of the issue once she was a little more stable.
Anna said: “Melina likes to get all the attention and the boys are quite competitive. They are all quite gentle with Mia, looking very cute. Although physically less developed, Mia was the first to say ‘mama’ – it was emotional. Having these four little miracles means four times love.
