Woman takes DNA test after noticing ancestry issue – result uncovers 40-year secret

Woman takes DNA test after noticing ancestry issue – result uncovers 40-year secretA routine DNA test has led to a discovery that has uncovered a decades-old family mystery stretching back more than 40 years.NewsMaria Ortega Foreign Content Specialist and Daniel Windham Assistant Editor, Trendswatch13:02, 17 Apr 2026Updated 13:02, 17 Apr 2026View 3 ImagesBoth women are now adults with their own families(Image: Getty Images/iStockphoto)Two women born just minutes apart in the same Buenos Aires hospital have discovered four decades later that they were switched at birth, following a DNA test that exposed a profound error dating back to 1986.‌The revelation centres on Paula and Gabriela, who were both born on March 22, 1986, just 13 minutes apart at the Italian Hospital in Buenos Aires. One was later raised in Miami, where she built a life as a lawyer and started a family, while the other grew up in the Morón district on the outskirts of the Argentine capital.‌The case only came to light in 2024, when Paula began investigating her origins after a routine ancestry DNA test revealed inconsistencies with her presumed biological family.‌It began as a standard genetic ancestry check intended to map her family heritage. Instead, the results showed no biological link to the parents who had raised her. Concerned by the outcome, she repeated the test, only to receive the same result again. A subsequent DNA test confirmed she was not biologically related to her family.Disturbed by the findings, she confronted her parents, who were unable to provide any explanation. The family then sought legal assistance, launching an investigation in Argentina with lawyer Ignacio Leguizamón Peña leading the case in the civil court of Buenos Aires.View 3 ImagesThe case only came to light in 2024(Image: Getty Images)‌Investigators first requested hospital records for March 22, 1986, from the Italian Hospital. Initially, officials reported no births that day, explaining that deliveries prior to a...