Doctors in China have been left stunned after discovering a two-year-old boy was carrying an undeveloped foetus inside his stomach.

The pregnant toddler had to undergo an operation to "give birth" to his own parasitic twin after doctors discovered the foetus.

The child was rushed to the operating room after arriving at hospital with a severely bloated stomach.

The unborn foetus measured 20 centimetres in width and had also formed a spine and limbs, as well as fingers and toes.

Experts believe that the parasitic twin would have killed the child, if it had been left untreated.