Rare diseases need more research. Within the world of monochorionic twins, there is a lot of unknowns and uncertainties. There is a need to find answers and create better treatment protocols for these special babies, and help their families make informed decisions when it comes to their pregnancies.
Mart’s Story
In 2020, the family discovered they were pregnant with spontaneous triplets. However, one of the babies did not develop properly. This became a risky situation for all of the babies, and the family was referred to the LUMC in Leiden, the Netherlands. They chose to watch and wait, to see what would happen under the supervision of the incredible fetal therapy team there.
At 29 weeks, the boys began to struggle and were delivered by cesarean section. They spent 10 days in the NICU in Leiden, followed by 5 weeks in Alkmaar, and another 4 weeks in Hoorn.
Today their surviving twins are doing fantastic, and it’s all thanks to the incredible team in the LUMC, as well as the teams in Hoorn and Alkmaar.
Inspired Action
Mart and his wife wanted to give back to the LUMC for the amazing care they had received, and the health of their boys, and they came up with the idea of the Twin Run. He would run from Hoorn, to Alkmaar, to Leiden to raise awareness of fetal syndromes, and raise money to support research into these diseases.
He approached the TAPS Support Foundation working with the fetal therapy team to raise money for a part-time researcher. They are also passionate about raising awareness of rare twin diseases, and the rest is history.
Support The Twin Run
Mart’s vision to run from Hoorn, to Alkmaar, to Leiden to connect the 3 hospitals that cared for his boys and raise money for research needs your support.
Make a donation, follow his journey on social media, and share his story!