Formerly Conjoined Twins Teresa and Josie Turn 21: Inside Their Incredible Journey

Josie Hull and Teresa Cajas were born joined at the head on July 25, 2001 in a Guatemalan village to Wenceslao and Leticia Quiej-Alvarez. The twin sisters were not expected to live more than a year.

With help from the nonprofit Healing the Children, the family was flown to Los Angeles and the twins underwent a grueling 23-hour separation surgery on Aug. 5, 2002 at UCLA Medical Center.

Though the girls have different families, Josie and Teresa live 50 miles apart and come together several times a week for physical therapy. Josie uses a walker and attended a public school while Teresa attended a special needs school.

Josie and Teresa celebrated their Quinceanera at the Children's Hospital Los Angeles, where they received their separation surgery.

The twins celebrated their Quinceanera eating cake with hospital staff and family, and visited with many of the doctors, surgeons and nurses that have aided in their post-surgery treatment over the years.

"I adore her," Josie says of Teresa. "She can't walk or talk, but I can understand her, and she can understand me. We communicate through our eyes."

In July, Josie and Teresa celebrated their 21st birthdays surrounded by family. The sisters both graduated high school in 2020 and serve as the inspiration for Once Upon A Room, a nonprofit that provides personalized hospital room makeovers for children fighting serious illnesses.

"As soon as they see each other, their faces always light up," says Teresa's brother of of the close bond between the twins. "They each know what the other has been through, and the moment teresa hears Josie's voice, her face breaks into a big smile."