Conjoined twin brothers who share three legs, intestines, a bladder, liver and genitals are today preparing for major life-changing surgery to be separated.

Surgeons in Brazil will perform the operation to separate Artur and Heitor Rocha, who are joined at the pelvis.

The five-year-olds share three legs, their intestines, a bladder, a liver and their genitals, which will be divided out during the procedure.

The boys, from Bahia in Brazil, will be separated at the hips and each will be left with just one leg, their third leg being used for vital skin grafts.

Artur will have two kidneys, while his brother will be left with just one, and only one of the boys will have genitals after separation, meaning further reconstructive procedures will be necessary.

The operation carries a high risk, but concerned parents Eliane and Rocha, both teachers, decided to go ahead to enable their sons to finally become independent.

The boy’s mother Eliane, said: ‘When I talk to them about the big surgery, they say they want to be separated. It’s not just mine and my family’s will, it’s theirs too.

‘They want to be independent. They want to make their own decisions about where to go.

‘I know I’m not imposing anything on them.’

Artur and Heitor are currently undergoing treatment in Goiania to stretch their skin with silicone expanders.

The procedure will create enough excess skin to stitch up the chest, stomach and pelvis of each boy after the difficult separation.

Their mother, said: ‘Every day I am more confident that day is nearer. The doctors are very positive, they are very hopeful because the skin treatments are working.’

Paediatrician Dr Zacharias Calil, who will be performing the separation surgery, has cared for Artur and Heitor since their birth in April.

He said: ‘This is a complex case. We’ve gone through a lot with these children, so the risk goes up a lot.

‘The separation itself is not majorly complicated to do, for someone with the experience.

‘What makes this very complicated, apart from the separation, is the post-op.

‘We don’t know how they’re going to react, in terms of their metabolism. There are no studies about that.’

Eliane found out that she was having conjoined twins five months into her pregnancy following a scan during her second trimester.

Devastated, the mother-to-be and her husband struggled to cope with the news, worrying not only for the health of the babies but for her health too.

Hurriedly the couple sought out the best doctor who reassured them Eliane wouldn’t suffer or be in danger during the pregnancy.

Despite their concerns they made the decision not to continue the pregnancy and the boys were born without any complications four months later.

After the birth, Eliane stayed in hospital for 22 days learning special ways to bathe and breastfeed her newborns.

The mother-of-three said: ‘The doctor said it was one of the most complicated cases he had ever seen.

‘It felt very emotional after the birth, I always imagined how they would look like, but actually seeing them was a very different experience.’

Eliane – who already had a daughter Cecilia – struggled to adjust to caring for the twins.

She added: ‘Initially it was difficult. Up until they were four months old they cried a lot. They would spend all night crying.

‘Sometimes one is really energetic and awake and the other one is sleeping. But they don’t bother each other.

‘One never wakes the other up, they let each other sleep.

‘When they were younger that bothered us. Because if they were awake at different time, it meant we had to be awake at all times.

And although they have spent their whole lives together, Artur and Heitor have very different personalities.

‘We do notice there are a lot of differences between the two of them,’ Eliane said.

‘Each of them has a distinct personality – one is more tough and the other a little sweeter. They are both lovely though.

‘Sometimes they want to play at different things, or go to a different place, and we have to try and make them understand that they have to compromise.’

The final separation surgery is expected to take place in a few months’ time and Eliane is focusing on thinking positively.

She said: ‘Now we’re really just waiting for separation surgery.

‘I’m looking forward to it, I want their lives to be better, and I do believe that day is coming.’