While it might be something that you've heard for the first time but 1 in 4500 women suffer from Mayer-Rockitansky-Kuster-Hauser syndrome or MRKH, a rare syndrome which affects the reproductive system.
To put it simply women who suffer from MRKH have no vagina, cervix or womb, which means that they can't reproduce either.
But thanks to science, a Gujarat woman who was born without a vagina will finally have a chance to become live a normal life, marry and have kids of her own.
Hetal was living with MRKH syndrome for 20 years. Her parents were quite worried about her condition and did not know what to do. "She was born without a vagina. We went to several private hospitals in Gujarat and Maharashtra but the doctors said it would cost at least Rs 10 lakh to carry out an operation," said her mother.
She also said that she had to be discreet about the enquiries. "If word got out that Hetal had such a problem, my other daughters would have had to suffer too. No one would marry them thinking this is hereditary," she told the Times Of India.
Ray of hope
Hetal's father works with a private firm in GIDC area and she is the third of four sisters. Her mother is a housewife. However, the family finally got a ray of hope when they met Dr Ajesh Desai, senior gynaecologist at Sola Civil.
"One in 4,500 women are affected by MRKH. Hetal had both ovaries which meant that she could have children through in vitro fertilization and surrogacy. However, her sole kidney was close to her vagina and the operation could damage it," said Dr Desai.
Three days ago, in a four-hour-long operation the doctors at Sola Civil Hospital performed a vaginoplasty using Davydov procedure to create a vaginal canal. The operation was risky as Hetal only had one kidney and it was positioned near the vagina, however, the surgery was successful
Superintendent (Sola Civil) Dr H K Bhavsar said, "We used the Davydov operation in which the vagina is created using a patient's own peritoneal lining. The peritoneum is a membrane that lines the walls of the abdominal and pelvic cavities. This is quite expensive but we conducted it for free under government's Maa scheme extended to people below poverty line."
The successful surgery means that Hetal would now be able to become a mother and lead a normal life. It's indeed amazing to hear about such miracles of science.
Also Read: Woman shares what's it like to live without a vagina
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