The woman happened to be a leader in the group Unitalsi, an Italian association helping ill, elderly, and disabled people to make pilgrimages. She said she could get them into the audience.
The mother and son initially sat in the fourth row in the audience hall, but they were invited to move to the front.
Morra took off Paolo’s hat, scarf, and jacket. She turned to put her own jacket on the back of the chair when her son began to walk up the steps of the platform towards the pope.
She called out, “Paolo, come here!” But nearby Swiss Guards assured her that the pope was happy for the child to approach him.
Later, Pope Francis greeted Morra. He took her hand and said: “Signora, forza! The impossible does not exist for you. I will be close to you in prayer. Keep going. You have done so much for your son. You are a super mom.”
Surprising test results
Morra received a phone call that evening, asking her to bring Paolo for tests in their home city of Bari the following day.
Doctors were concerned that Paolo had very high levels of prolactin, a protein secreted from the pituitary gland, which can rise following epileptic seizures.
The mother and son attended the appointment on Oct. 21. Three days later, a doctor called Morra to tell her that Paolo’s prolactin level had fallen from a high of 157 to 106, though medics did not know how or why.
Morra said that she and Paolo returned to Rome on Nov. 5 for further tests.
“Within two weeks [Paolo’s prolactin level] dropped to 26, which is another 80 points lower,” she explained.
He also recorded an increased level of hemoglobin, the protein that carries oxygen around the body, which is critical for Paolo as he suffers from the blood disorder thalassemia.
Morra said that doctors were able to rule out the hypotheses that Paolo was suffering from a tumor or sclerosis, a scarring in the brain.
This was an enormous relief for his mother, who worried that her son might not be able to withstand the rigors of surgery. She feared that an operation would lead to Paolo being confined to a wheelchair, or perhaps even dying.
Speaking to CBS News last November, Morra was asked what she would like to say to Pope Francis following the life-changing meeting with her son.
“Thank you for the miracle,” she said.
The interview with Elsa Morra was conducted by Giulio Capece for CNA.
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