JESY Nelson has been flooded with support after sharing the heartbreaking diagnosis of her twin girls – including her ex, Chris Hughes.
The former Little Mix star took to Instagram on Sunday to open up about her twins, Ocean Jade and Story Munroe, revealing they have been diagnosed with a rare muscle wasting disease that could be fatal.
Speaking from her home, Jesy said the pair have been diagnosed with SMA Type 1, or Werdnig-Hoffmann disease, the most severe form of Spinal Muscular Atrophy.
The tearful star told the camera: “If it’s not treated in time, your baby’s life expectancy will not make it past the age of two.”
Her stunningly honest discussion prompted a wave of support from celebrity pals, with Chris – who dated Jesy from 2018 to 2020 – one of the first to back her up and send her love.
“A warrior Jess. Be easy on yourself,” he told her. “Sending prayers to you all, everyone behind you guys 🤍”
Amy Childs added: “I’m so sorry jesy what your going through ❤️xx sending love and strength to you and your beautiful girls xxx”
Megan McKenna wrote: “My heart is breaking for the pain you are in right now. Sending so many prayers and love to your beautiful girls ♥️♥️”
Jess Wright also commented, telling Jesy: “Sending you so much love Jesy. Love & strength ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️”
Ashley James also noted: “Jesy I’m so sorry. I’m thinking of you and your girls and sending love ❤️❤️’
“Jes, There are no words big enough for how unfair and heartbreaking this is. I am so deeply sorry,” wrote I’m A Celeb star Shona McGarty. “My heart aches for you and for your beautiful little girls.
“Please know that their lives, no matter what, are already filled with love because of you. That love matters. It always will.
“You don’t have to be strong, and you don’t have to find the right words. However you feel, whatever you need, it’s okay.
“You are not alone in this, Jes. You are so loved, and your girls are so loved. I’m holding you all in my heart. 💔🤍”
While Shaughna Phillips also added: “Sending you and your girls so much love and positive prayers, you are a superwoman and they are lucky to have you ❤️❤️❤️”
Jesy’s Journey
Jesy has shared that her babies had to endure “months and months” of doctors appointments before finally getting diagnosed with SMA Type-1.
Spinal Muscular Atrophy: Signs and symptoms
Spinal muscular atrophy is a disease which takes away a persons strength and it causes problems by disrupting the motor nerve cells in the spinal cord.
This causes an individual to lose the ability to walk, eat and breathe.
There are four types of SMA – which are based on age.
- Type 1 is diagnosed within the first six months of life and is usually fatal.
- Type 2 is diagnosed after six months of age.
- Type 3 is diagnosed after 18 months of age and may require the individual to use a wheelchair.
- Type 4 is the rarest form of SMA and usually only surfaces in adulthood.
What are the symptoms?
The symptoms of SMA will depend on which type of condition you have.
But the following are the most common symptoms:
• Floppy or weak arms and legs
• Movement problems – such as difficulty sitting up, crawling or walking
• Twitching or shaking muscles
• Bone and joint problems – such as an unusually curved spine
• Swallowing problems
• Breathing difficulties
However, SMA does not affect a person’s intelligence and it does not cause learning disabilities.
How common is it?
The majority of the time a child can only be born with the condition if both of their parents have a fault gene which causes SMA.
Usually, the parent would not have the condition themselves – they would only act as a carrier.
Statistics show around 1 in every 40 to 60 people is a carrier of the gene which can cause SMA.
If two parents carry the faulty gene there is a 1 in 4 (25 per cent) chance their child will get Spinal muscular atrophy.
It affects around 1 in 11,000 babies.
The twins, which Jesy shares with Zion Foster, were born two months premature in May 2025, following a difficult pregnancy that saw her diagnosed with twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS), a rare but serious condition in which blood flows unevenly between identical twins sharing a placenta.
In her newest video, Jesy revealed that her mother, Janice, raised concerns after the twins didn’t show much movement in their legs.
While their initial concerns were chalked up to the twins being premature and therefore unlikely to hit milestones at the same pace as other children, Jesy and Zion pushed for more tests after they had trouble feeding.
According to Jesy, it took three to four months of appointments before they finally got a diagnosis, with the pair then being treated at Great Ormond Street Hospital.
“I feel like I’ve almost had to become a nurse in the space of two weeks,” Jesy added, explaining how she has had to put her daughters on breathing machines.
“The reason I wanted to make this video was because, the last few months has honestly been the most heartbreaking time of my life. I feel like my whole life has done a 360.
“I’m grieving a life I thought I was going to have with my children,” she emotionally said, before acknowledging that she is grateful to have them.
“I truly believe that my girls will defy all odds. And with the right help, they will fight this, and go on to do things that have never been done.”
“They probably will never regain their neck strength, so they will be disabled,” she revealed, adding it’s also unlikely they’ll ever be able to walk.
“So the best thing we can do right now is get them treatment and just hope for the best.”
Jesy then said that she wanted to make the video because if the disease is detected early enough in the first few months of a baby’s life “a lot of this stuff could be prevented”.
Shortly after Jesy shared the highly emotional video, her partner Zion Foster spoke out about their daughters’ diagnosis.
Taking to his Instagram page, Zion shared a photo of his daughters in what looked a stroller.
With tubes attached to their noses, the two tots could still be smiling widely.
Alongside the photo, Zion wrote: “Still smiling through all the challenges. Daddy loves you so much.”