Parents who were preparing to welcome their third child found out they would actually have four additions to their family instead of just one. When she went in for an ultrasound during her pregnancy, Rachel Vargas learned that she and her husband, Marco Vargas, were going to have identical quadruplets. The miracle pregnancy also came with lots of uncertainty, complications, and risks.
Rachel was shocked when she learned she would be welcoming quadruplets.
Speaking to ABC News, the mom of six recalled being told “there are four of them” during an ultrasound appointment. “I just kind of went blank. I don’t know. I think I was in shock,” she told the news outlet. She and her husband had not used any fertility treatments or other interventions to get pregnant. According to Banner Health, this is “incredibly rare” – about a 1 in 11 million chance.
The pregnancy came with serious risks.
Ultimately, the couple decided to seek specialized care and traveled from Rhode Island to Arizona to receive it. Their doctor, maternal-fetal medicine specialist Dr. John Elliott, said, “the outlook when I first started to care for Rachel was quite grim,” per WPRI.
In addition to facing umbilical cord complications and other risks, two of the babies were also diagnosed with twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome. According to Banner Health, “with multiple complications, their doctor estimated the chances of a successful pregnancy were closer to 1 in 40 million.”
Marco was also concerned about the risk the pregnancy posed for his wife. “This was something that could have cost her, you know, [her] life, [her] health,” he told ABC News.
They welcomed their quadruplets in January.
In spite of the risks and challenges the family faced, their four girls were born via Cesarean section on January 24, 2025. They were born 30 weeks and three days into Rachel’s pregnancy and continued to receive care in the neonatal intensive care unit for two months. “I’m so happy to finally be able to touch and hold my four little girls now,” Rachel said, per WPRI.
Since then, the family has left the hospital and returned home. Rachel and Marco’s other children, 3-year-old son Walter and 1-year-old Stella, have met their four younger sisters. Although Stella is still adjusting, Walter has taken the news quite well. The parents told ABC News that he’s been trying to help look after his sisters.
On social media, Banner Health celebrated the quadruplets’ arrival and their journey home. “Their pregnancy was exceptionally rare, with odds estimated between 1 in 11 million and 1 in 40 million due to the spontaneous conception and medical complications,” Banner Health captioned an April 2 Instagram post. “Dr. John Elliott, a multiple birth specialist at Banner Health who has delivered 127 sets of quadruplets, said this pregnancy was unlike any other in his career.”
Rachel urged other families to advocate for themselves.
According to the doctor, “this excellent outcome” was possible due to “the combination of our highly trained medical personnel and the family’s positive attitude.”
Rachel hopes that their story will inspire other families. “A lot of my pregnancy was filled with uncertainty, but I think it’s important for other families like ours to have hope and advocate for themselves – it’s okay to seek multiple opinions to decide on the best plan for your family,” she told WPRI.
