Kendra and Maliyah Herrin

Kendra Deene Herrin and Maliyah Mae Herrin, born on 26 February 2002, are former conjoined twins who were separated in August 2006. They were the first conjoined twins to be separated while sharing a kidney. Kendra kept the shared kidney after the operation, while Maliyah underwent dialysis until she received a kidney donated by her mother in April 2007. Before the surgery, medical ethicists in the United States and Europe debated whether separation was ethical given the added risk to Maliyah. Their family and doctors believed that separating them would give both girls their best chance of a normal life.