We’ve all heard people complain that there’s enough drama in their lives for two people, and yes, they’re usually just being drama queens. But what if you kinda sorta were two people, even though you appeared to be one person on the outside? That’s a whole other level right there…

What is a chimera?

A chimera is a single person that, through the process of absorbing a twin in the womb, carries the DNA, and sometimes other body parts, of two different people. For example, in 1998, Scottish doctors reported treating a teenage boy for an undescended testicle. But when they put him under the knife, no second testicle could be found to pull down. Instead, doctors discovered an ovary and fallopian tube belonging to the boy’s chimeric twin.

Am I one?

Actually, you might be, as not all cases are anything like as striking as the one above. In fact, unless there is one day a reason to test DNA from different parts of your body, there wouldn’t necessarily be any obvious signs at all.

The fact that it’s possible to live as a chimera with no obvious side-effects or symptoms, prompts some doctors to believe that the condition is more common than people realise.

Can anything be done?

Chimeras are two people who are fused at the cellular level. So no. If you are one, you’re staying one. But, as mentioned above there’s generally no need for anything to be done as there are usually no medical complications.

That doesn’t mean that there aren’t complications of a different sort though, as in the case of Lydia Fairchild whose DNA tests suggested that she wasn’t the mother of her children. Even though she was. In fact, the initial DNA test almost cost her custody of her children until her chimeric nature was discovered.

Source : BoingBoing