113-year-old Spanish woman likely world's oldest coronavirus survivor

MADRID -- A 113-year-old Spanish woman is thought to be the oldest person in the world to have survived COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, Spanish media reported on Tuesday.

The Catalan newspaper La Vanguardia reported that Maria Branyas, who has spent the last 20 years in the Residencia Santa Maria de Tura, a residence for the elderly close to the city of Girona in northeast Spain, tested positive for the coronavirus in April.

However, after several weeks in isolation in her room, further tests on Monday confirmed that she had beaten the virus after only suffering minor symptoms.

Her recovery means she is very likely to be the oldest person in the world to recover from COVID-19.

Maria was born in the United States in 1907 and has 11 grandchildren and 13 great-grandchildren, whom she hasn't seen since they celebrate her 113th birthday on March 4.

Maria even had her own social media account run by her daughter, who said that now Maria "feels good; she is enjoying talking again, making her reflections."

When Maria was still a girl, she suffered and recovered from the Spanish flu. It means that she is almost certainly the only person in the world to have overcome the two pandemics.