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Heartbroken mum told that one of her toddler twins only has 12 months to live

A Brisbane mother has received the devastating news that her toddler son has only 12 months to live.

Single mother to twin boys, Rachel Irvin, is now determined to fit 100 years of living into one for her almost two-year-old son Kohan.

Rachel, 28, was informed when she was 16 weeks pregnant that one twin only had formed half of his heart, and that his organs were on the wrong side of his little body.

Kohan and Chet are called MoMo twins, an extremely rare twin type where both babies share the same placenta and also grow inside in the same amniotic sack.

Single mum Rachel says she's determined to fit 100 years of living into the short time her little boy has left. Photo: Supplied
Single mum Rachel says she's determined to fit 100 years of living into the short time her little boy has left. Photo: Supplied
The twins at home. Photo: Supplied
The twins at home. Photo: Supplied

During Kohan’s short life, Rachel has been woken countless times by a phone call from the hospital informing her she needed to rush to her baby’s side before he died, the NZ Herald reports.

Each time brave little Kohan has defied the odds and survived, despite his severe heart condition.

During her pregnancy Rachel was given three options: terminate one of the twins, put Kohan in palliative care immediately following delivery or wait and see if he would reach 3kg following birth, which would make him eligible for open-heart surgery.

Rachel with her sick toddler. Photo: Supplied
Rachel with her sick toddler. Photo: Supplied
Rachel was told that one of her twins was terminally ill during her pregnancy. Photo: Supplied
Rachel was told that one of her twins was terminally ill during her pregnancy. Photo: Supplied

Rachel reportedly knew immediately she wanted to fight for her son’s life.

"Palliative care was never an option for me, I could never leave my child to pass away without actually trying to give him a life," she told Daily Mail Australia.

"I always knew I wanted to continue on with the pregnancy and give Kohan every opportunity to fight."

The boys are MoMo twins, an extremely rare twin type where both babies share the same placenta and also grow inside in the same amniotic sack. Photo: Supplied
The boys are MoMo twins, an extremely rare twin type where both babies share the same placenta and also grow inside in the same amniotic sack. Photo: Supplied

However, during a recent meeting with medical teams Rachel was told the devastating news that Kohan has only up to 12 months to live.

The mother took him out of hospital "as quickly as possible", bringing him home to her and Chet last Friday.

Now she has set up a GoFundMe page in a bid to help her raise funds for special activities in the hope she can create special memories with her little one over the next year.

Rachel says she was eager to get her son out of hospital as quickly as possible. Photo: Supplied
Rachel says she was eager to get her son out of hospital as quickly as possible. Photo: Supplied

"As long as he's feeling well enough, we'll go out and make more experiences, even if it's just a walk around the beach or little things like that," Irvin said.

The mother also wants to make sure she creates plenty of experiences with Kohan that Chet can "hold onto for the rest of his life".