Rare condition means a woman can have two pregnancies at once

Her doctor told her she also had two wombs and two cervixes

An ultrasound revealed she had one kidney and MRI showed two vaginas

A YouTube star has revealed how a routine scan revealed she had just one kidney but two vaginas, two wombs and two cervixes.

Cassandra Bankson, who blogs on her channel DiamondsAndHeels14, told her one million subscribers that doctors made the discovery after she complained of lower back pain.

The 22-year-old, from San Francisco, set up her channel four years ago to offer advise on everything from living with severe acne, to make-up tips and how to deal with bullies.

When she started to complain of back pain last summer, doctors suggested she undergo an ultrasound, MRI and blood tests.

Following the ultrasound, her doctor suggested she might only have one kidney - a diagnosis that was confirmed by an MRI scan.

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YouTube blogger Cassandra Bankson, who started her channel four years ago after suffering severe acne, was diagnosed with having two vaginas, two wombs and two cervixes after a scan

Dr Dena Harris, pictured left, explains more about the condition known as uterus didelphys. Cassandra has one vaginal opening but two vaginas inside. The condition can lead to two pregnancies

But when revealing the diagnosis to Cassandra, the doctor also informed her that she has two vaginas, two wombs and two cervixes.

The condition, uterus didelphys, is also known as double uterus, and occurs because the uterus starts out as two small tubes in the womb.

Cassandra, who also works as a model, said: 'When we got the test results back the doctor said I only had one kidney and flippantly added that I have two vaginas - as she suspected.

'There is one vaginal opening but inside there are two vaginas, two uteri, two cervixes.

'Most vaginas are one large cavity but this is a complete separation into two different cavities.

'I was shocked and the doctor explained to me that it was like an upside nose.

'I didn't really know what to make of it - I was just in shock but I don't really let it get in the way of my life.

'It certainly helped explain a lot of things.'

While the condition may not lead to her being unable to conceive or leave her more susceptible to feminine cancers it can lead to complications.

Cassandra added: 'Ever since I was younger I would go to the doctor because I was bleeding for 28 days or I would have two periods a month - but they never suspected I had a second vagina.

'I always had really bad cramps - I could not move or my bowels would just not want to behave because the cramps were so bad.

The 22-year-old from San Francisco discovered she had the rare condition after an ultrasound scan to check her kidneys revealed she had just one kidney. Her doctor then ordered an MRI scan which confirmed her suspicions that Cassandra had two vaginas

HOW IS IT POSSIBLE TO HAVE TWO VAGINAS AND TWO WOMBS? Uterus didelphys, also known as a double uterus, is a condition where a woman is born with two wombs, to separate cervixes and sometimes two vaginas, though this is not always the case. It occurs because in a female foetus, the uterus starts out as two small tubes. As the foetus develops, the tubes normally join to create one larger, hollow organ — the uterus. Sometimes the tubes don't join completely and each one develops into a separate hollow organ so the woman is born with two wombs. It often only becomes noticeable after puberty and is diagnosed with a physical exam or an ultrasound scan. Dr Leila Hanna, a consultant gynaecologist & Obstetrician at BMI The Sloane Hospital, said women can go for years without realising they have an extra womb. When the female foetus is developing, two tubes normally join to create one larger, hollow organ - the uterus (top picture). But in a minority of women, including Ms Woodhead, the tubes don't join - allowing two hollow organs to form instead. This means the woman is born with two wombs (bottom picture) She told MailOnline: 'Sometimes it's discovered in a physical exam, or when they have cervical smears. 'If the lady is pregnant and they have an early scan it can be picked up then. 'But if they don't have any tests, then it's not noticed - and they can go for years and years without knowing.' In terms of physical anatomy, the two wombs are often slightly smaller than average in order to fit, though they can be as big as a 'normal' womb. It also makes it possible to be pregnant twice at the same time - with a baby in each womb. ‘Although women normally produce only one egg a month, sometimes they can produce two,' explained Dr Hanna. ‘If they have sex at the right time, they can have a pregnancy in each womb - non-identical twins. ‘It’s a rare thing, but it can happen once in a blue moon. Some women are also born with two vaginas, which can lead to complications with sex and during menstruation. Dr Hanna said: 'Some have a septum in the vagina. If they have two vaginas they will need to wear two tampons. 'If they've got one vagina it doesn't affect sex. But if they have two vaginas then there can be some difficulties with sex.' And to properly check they are healthy, smear tests should be carried out in both cervixes. She reiterated that having two wombs can lead to complications during pregnancy. 'They're more likely to have a baby breach position and require a Caesarean. These woman are also more likely to have miscarriage.' She added: 'If they've got a small uterus, they're more likely to have a pre-term birth.' Advertisement

'It is extremely difficult to deal with because you don't know whether your period is going to last a week or three.

'As far as my understanding of how it affects a person's sex life - for some people having two vaginas can make it very painful - for others I assume there are more nerve endings so it could be more pleasurable.'

Cassandra added: 'I'm definitely nervous about having to explain this to future partners. It's not something I'm looking forward to.

I didn't really know what to make of it - I was just in shock but I don't really let it get in the way of my life Cassandra Bankson

'It's obviously a huge deal and I have no real idea how this is going to affect my life so it's something we would have to talk about.

'But hopefully it won't be an issue - when I do meet someone I'll be looking for an emotional connection, somebody to laugh and joke with - the sex side of things isn't a huge issue for me.'

Despite the rarity of her case Cassandra found her family very supportive when she made the announcement.

She added: 'I kind of walked in and said, 'guess what mom I'm twice the woman - I have two vaginas'.

'She really didn't know what to say and my dad was really shocked.

'He's a math guy so was trying to figure out how this would even be possible but they're cool with it.

'It's no real issue for my friends - I just tell them that I'm pretty special but they just see me as Cassy - not Cassy with the two vaginas.'

Cassandra's YouTube channel became a success when she began making videos about her chronic acne and how she covers it up - with the most popular one gaining over 25 million views.

She said: 'I got my first pimple at eight or nine years old and kids would make comments about it.

Cassandra set up her channel DiamondsAndHeels14 four years ago to offer advise on everything from living with severe acne, to make-up tips and how to deal with bullies. She first started to suffer with spots at the age of eight or nine, and has been the target of school bullies as a result

Her YouTube channel, which has more than one million subscribers, features videos offering advise, as well as make-up tutorials to help other acne sufferers

Cassandra has done some work as a model, and walked the catwalk at New York Fashion Week for the popular brand Boy Meets Girl

'I realised I was different and other people didn't have that on their face.

'I would be in the grocery store and children would point at me and say "mommy what's wrong with her face".

'It was incredibly difficult to deal with. I ended up seeing doctors and dermatologists but the bullying got really bad.

Women develop two vaginas when the embryo is developing - it separates into different parts and fuses - if they don't fuse all the way you can get two uteruses and two vaginas Dr Dena Harris

'The school counsellor would look at me and tell me to stop being such a drama queen - saying that "kids will be kids".

'The acne got really bad and it ended up covering 90 per cent of my chest, face and back by that point I had to leave public school because of the bullying.

'I had zero confidence and just did not like the person I was. I was incredibly quiet and it was painful to talk to other people.

'The YouTube channel and community completely changed that - it helped make me into the confident person I am today.'

After leaving public school and enrolling in a private study programme Cassandra was able to graduate two years early and do lots of research on how to deal with her acne.

She said: 'I discovered that sometimes the four dollar concealer from the drug store worked much better than the fifty dollar designer product - there was a lot of trial and error.

'I was able to use make up to look like the person I wanted to be within a sensible budget.

'It all took off for me when I decided to share what I had learned with YouTube - it became very popular.'

Cassandra said: 'I was shocked and the doctor explained to me that it was like an upside nose. I didn't really know what to make of it - I was just in shock but I don't really let it get in the way of my life'

In just a few short months she developed a large following of subscribers but it really took off when she published a video on how to cover acne with foundation.

She added: 'So far it's got around 26 million views and it just keeps going - I posted it shortly after launching the channel and that's when I knew how big this thing could be - how many people need this help, advice and support.

'My subscribers went up over night and I started to get calls from the mainstream media - it was like a whirlwind and things haven't really slowed down since.'

Dr Harris, told Cassandra, the condition shouldn't cause her too many problems in life, despite being very rare

Cassandra recently modelled for the brand Boy Meets Girl at New York Fashion Week and is starting to get more work as a model.

While in the city she visited one of New York's top gynaecologists Dr Dena Harris to discuss her condition.

Dr Dena said: 'A lot of women do not even know they have this condition and find out when they're pregnant - It's possible it won't even bother Cassandra in a sexual way.

'There's a possibility there will be some issues with getting pregnant for Cassy - but if there's a problem it can be dealt with but we would hope she will be fine.

'I don't think she will be more susceptible to feminine cancer based on her anomalies and I don't think that there's any correlation between Cassandra's acne and her vaginal abnormality - but I can't be sure on that.

'Women develop two vaginas when the embryo is developing - it separates into different parts and fuses - if they don't fuse all the way you can get two uteri and two vaginas.

'It's very rare but Cassandra can live a normal life and if there are any problems we could work to fix them.'

Cassandra's acne has improved slightly over the past couple of years and she puts this down to her healthy vegan lifestyle and abstinence from drink and drugs.

'My two vaginas can be treated if they need to be and that's good to know,' she added.

'But it's not causing problems and I'm not trying to have kids right now but when I do decide I will hopefully be able to have them naturally.

'I'm feeling pretty calm about the whole situation.'

While treatment will be available for the condition in the future - Cassandra is resolved to focus on her YouTube channel and helping those who may have faced similar obstacles.