Former 8-Limbed Girl Thriving
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Lakshmi Tatma, shown in her school uniform, is all smiles at her home in Jodhpur, India. The-4-year-old made headlines around the world when she was born joined at the pelvis to a “parasitic twin” that stopped developing in her mother’s womb. As a result, she had eight limbs. (Barcroft/Fame Pictures)
Lakshmi plays with her younger sister Saraswati as their mom looks on at their home in Jodhpur, India on January 4, 2010. Lakshmi underwent a groundbreaking 27-hour operation to separate her from a parasitic twin at the age of 2. (Barcroft/Fame Pictures)
During that surgery, a team of specialists removed the extra limbs, transplanted a kidney from the twin and reconstructed Lakshmi's pelvic area. Although she has made tremendous strides and now attends school and looks like any other little girl, she still faces an uncertain future after doctors discovered she had developed a curvature of the spine. (Barcroft/Fame Pictures)
Lakshmi walks with her dad Shambu outside their home in India - something that was not possible before surgery. And even though she will need more surgeries due to the curvature of her spine, it's not slowing her down. Lakshmi is incredibly active, even playing sports at school. (Barcroft/Fame Pictures)
This file photo shows Lakshmi at 18-months old. Before she underwent surgery, she was visited by villagers who knelt at her bed and offered gifts, convinced that she was the incarnation of a goddess. (Barcroft/Fame Pictures)
This 2007 file photo shows a CT Scan of Lakshmi when she was 2 years old. In the picture, you can clearly see the parasitic conjoined twin. Surgeons at the Sparsh Hospital in Bangalore, India separated Lakshmi from her parasitic twin on November, 6, 2007. (Barcroft/Fame Pictures)