In 2004 Antonietta Raco was suffering from severe migraine attacks, accompanied by cramps and generalised asthenia, with walking difficulties. By 2005 walking difficulties had worsened, with the appearance of dysphagia and dysarthria. In 2006: she was diagnosed with Primary Lateral Sclerosis (PLS). Then in 2008 her condition worsened, with a reduction in her expiratory Forced Vital Capacity (FVC), as well as hyposthenia and tetraparesis.
In 2009 Antonietta Raco went on a pilgrimage to Lourdes from 30 July to 5 August, accompanied by UNITALSI (Basilicata region). When she went to the Baths in Lourdes, she reported feeling an unusual sense of well-being and being able to walk again. She did not speak about it until she returned home. In August and September of the same year, she underwent a series of check-ups which showed that the symptoms she had been experiencing since 2004 had disappeared.
In July 2010: Antonietta Raco declared her supposed cure to the Lourdes Office of Medical Observations. Doctors of the Bureau des Constatations unanimously decided to open a file and investigate her medical history. 5 meetings of the Bureau were held in subsequent years to review the investigation and discuss the case of Antonietta Raco. In 2017: a 5th and final meeting of the Bureau des Constatations was convened, the members of the Bureau who were present collegially observed Antonietta Raco’s cure, qualified as unexplained according to medical knowledge.
In November 2024: after a period of clinical observation and validation of the international consensus on the diagnosis of PLS, the International Medical Committee of Lourdes (CMIL) declared Mrs Antonietta Racohad been cured of Primary Lateral Sclerosis (PLS) in an unexpected, complete, lasting and unexplained manner according to medical knowledge! The bishop of the diocese of Tarbes and Lourdes informed the bishop of the diocese of Tursi-Lagonegro (the diocese where Antonietta Raco resides) who then proclaimed the miracle on 16 April 2025.
In July 2025 Antonietta Raco makes an emotional return to Lourdes, for the first time following the official proclamation of her miraculous healing.
