Efforts to separate Baby Rebeca Martinez from the conjoined head failed when the infant died due to hemorrhaging on Saturday at 6am, just hours after surgery. The 11-hour operation took place on Friday night and was led by Dr. Jorge Lazareff, top brain surgeon and director of pediatric neurosurgery at the University of California at Los Angeles’ Mattel Children’s Hospital. Lazareff worked with a team of Dominican physicians led by Dr. Santiago Hazim at the Centro de Especialidad Ortopedicas in Santo Domingo. The baby’s parents were aware that the surgery entailed very high risk, but that it was her only chance of survival. The second head was growing faster than the first, and physicians feared that by the time the baby was three months, she would not be able to lift her head. Cure International combined with some local donations helped fund the more than US$100,000 cost of the medical treatment, which was the second such operation to be performed in Latin America and the ninth in the world. A similar operation in Guatemala ended successfully.