A doctor who saved a baby from being terminated has been nominated for a Pride in Medway award.

Nicole Freeman was told she would never get pregnant again after having surgery on her womb.But seven months later, she discovered she was expecting twins.

After hearing how the risks involved were too high and the chance of her babies surviving was slim, she arranged a termination.

But, just days before her appointment, she went for her routine three-month scan where Dr Ranjit Akolekar told her the pregnancy could be a success.

The mum, who had three boys at the time, said: “It was a really hard decision because I knew there were so many risks to my health and nobody could tell me if my babies would survive by the end of it.

“But Dr Akolekar convinced me it was possible, so I cancelled the termination and took the best risk I have ever taken.”

However, just when she thought everything was going to be OK, it was discovered one baby didn’t have the room to develop properly.

The 41-year-old was told she’d have to terminate the baby that wasn’t growing or risk losing both. She said: “I then had to start going for weekly scans and it was so hard seeing him getting smaller and smaller each time. It was the hardest time of my life.”

Then, when she was 27-weeks pregnant, Nicole started bleeding heavily and it was discovered the healthy baby had a lump on her head caused by pressure and had to be born straight away.

On April 1 last year, Nicole gave birth to Grace and Gabriel Moore.

She added: “Grace then had to spend three months in the Oliver Fisher unit at Medway Hospital.

“She was born with scoliosis and I was told they didn’t know if she would ever walk.”

Now a year on, Grace is a happy baby, her spine has straightened out and she has learnt to crawl.

Nicola added: “She is my little miracle baby, I would definitely go through it all again for her.

“It’s all down to Dr Akolekar she is here with me.”

Dr Akolekar said: “It was a high-risk pregnancy and after a detailed consultation with me, she and her partner deliberated on it for quite some time. In spite of the risk of complications, there was a chance she could end up with a good outcome, but it seemed quite a challenge to be confident of this early on in the pregnancy.

“I was humbled to hear Nicole has nominated me for a Pride of Medway Award. But this nomination is really for the entire team of the Fetal Medicine Unit at Medway NHS Foundation Trust.

“I am indeed glad for her and wish her and her family the best and many years of happiness ahead.”

For more information about the Pride in Medway awards, or to nominate someone you know, visit www.pridein.co.uk