Astoundingly enough, a 91-year old woman was recently informed by doctors that she has been carrying a calcified fetus inside of her for decades. Estela Melendez has long had a lump on her stomach that would sometimes hurt her. In the past, she was told that it was a tumor. However, doctors recently figured out that it is actually a fetus that has been in her uterus for over 60 years. They made this discover accidentally when X-Ray’s were taken of Melendez’s pelvic region after a fall.
Melendez recently lost her husband of 74 years. His name was Manuel, and he worked as a fisherman. Although the couple had a happy marriage, they both had always wanted children, and it was painful to them that this never happened. Now, Melendez sees that they were much closer to having a child than they ever dreamed.
While Melendez’s story is certainly remarkable, it is not entirely unique. In a similar case, a woman suffered from headaches for years. Doctors believed she had a brain tumor at first, but then discovered that the tumor was actually the calcified fetus of her twin. Fortunately, the calcified twin was able to be removed by surgery and the woman no longer has headaches.
Doctors decided against removing Melendez’s calcified fetus because of the risk that any invasive surgery presents to a patient as old as her. This is fine with Melendez since she’s grown accustomed to the lump. Even though it’s sometimes painful, the lump now reminds her of her husband and gives her pleasant thoughts about the child they never had together.