The severely disfigured man whose full-body tumours were lovingly kissed by the Pope has told MailOnline the moving story of his life.
Vinicio Riva, from Vicenza in northern Italy, is covered from head-to-toe in painful growths, a symptom of his genetic disease neurofibromatosis, passed down to him by his late mother.
Earlier this month the 53-year-old's picture spread across the world when he was warmly embraced by Pope Francis at one of the pontiff's weekly audiences in St Peter's Square.
Brave: Vinicio Riva, from Vicenza in northern Italy, pictured with his aunt Catherine, is covered from head-to-toe in growths, but was kissed by the Pope in a moment seen around the world
Overwhelmed: Mr Riva said that being caressed by Pope Francis made his heart beat so fast he thought he 'would die'
Tough life: Vinicio as a young boy before his condition fully developed and then as the pontiff Francis kissed him
In an exclusive interview with MailOnline, the brave man has described meeting the head of the Catholic church, saying that being caressed by Pope Francis made his heart beat so fast he thought he 'would die'.
The pontiff's hug was 'like paradise', he said, adding: 'He didn't even think about whether or not to hug me.
'I'm not contagious, but he didn't know that. But he just did it: he caressed me all over my face, and as he did I felt only love.'
Mr Riva recollected: 'He came down from the altar to see the sick people. He embraced me without saying a word. I felt as though my heart was leaving my body.
'He was completely silent but sometimes you can say more when you say nothing.'
'First, I kissed his hand while with the other hand he caressed my head and wounds. Then he drew me to him in a strong embrace, kissing my face.
'My head was against his chest his arms were wrapped around me. It lasted just over a minute, but to me it seemed like an eternity.'
Photographs of the touching embrace were shown across the world and drew comparisons to the 13th Centiry's St Francis of Assisi.
It was one of a number of public acts of humility carried out by Pope Francis that has inspired an increase in congregation numbers in Catholic churches across the world.
Since he was elected eight months ago, Pope Francis has been seen to wash the feet of juvenile delinquents, personally call distraught worshipers on the phone and invite homeless people to dine at St Peter's Square.
The so-called 'Pope Francis Effect' has been credited with a 20 per cent rise in Catholic congregations in Britain, and similar boosts in Italy, Spain, France, the U.S., and Latin America.
Family: Vinicio Riva's mother, who died of the genetic disease he suffers from called neorofibramatosis
The Italian Centre for Studies of New Religions say 'hundreds of thousands' of people have flocked to the church since his election.
Mr Riva was accompanied to the Vatican by his aunt, Caterina Lotto, 68. Afterwards he felt so emotional and his heart was beating so hard he turned to her and said: 'This is going to kill me .'
Mr Riva lives with his sister Morena, 46, in the council house they share outside Vicenza.
He has endured numerous operations on his heart, throat and eyes, and often gets short of breath as a result of his condition.
Mr Riva suffers from open wounds on his legs that bleed onto his clothes and always wakes wearing a T-shirt covered in blood.
His sister Morena also suffers from the disease, although from a far milder form. Their mother Rosalia was the genetic carrier that passed on the disease but she did not develop any symptoms until she had children.
Until the age of 15, Mr Riva was an unblemished, self-assured adolescent. But then the growths appeared all over his body, inch by painful inch.
Now his entire face and head are covered in the boils. Only his left cheek, which is warped, is free of the painful growths.
During an operation on his heart the doctors had to enter through the armpit to avoid the tumours which cover his torso.
His feet are deformed and devastated by the sores, which makes walking difficult. He rides to work and around the village by bike but visited the Vatican by wheelchair because of the long waiting time on foot.
The dermatology patient's mother, Rosaria, eventually died of the condition, aged 81, and Mr Riva himself was only expected to live until the age of 30.
His father, 77, a former builder, who still lives in the retirement home where Mr Riva now works, seems to have been a somewhat authoritarian figure.
Mr Riva showed little affection to his son after he got sick and pulled him out of school aged 15 to come and work on the building sites with him. The dust made the boy's sores itch terribly.
Later the son went to work, painting in a ceramics factory and, in a specially assisted place for disabled people, assembling parts such as car batteries.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2509678/I-felt-heart-leaving-body-Terribly-disfigured-man-held-Pope-relives-moment-moved-world.html#ixzz2lIl011FW
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