'My face terrified a little boy': Reclusive grandmother covered in bubble-like tumours finally learns to live with her appearance

                         

In her 20s Charlotte Hawkins resembled a pin-up with soft curls and a clear, flawless complexion (centre). When the now 64-year-old, from Georgia, was 15 she first noticed a lumpy patch of skin at the bottom of her back. Surgeons removed the lumps but within 10 years she was barely recognisable, her face and body covered in bubble-like tumours. Today, the brave grandmother lives with America's worst case of the incurable disorder Type 1 neurofibromatosis. Her case is so severe that the lumps began spreading, making

 it impossible for doctors to continue to remove them. She spent years held hostage in her home, ashamed to leave the house. Eventually she was contacted by her local church and was finally made to feel accepted in the community.She began helping out at the church's playgroup, telling stories and teaching prayers to the youngsters. She said: 'I live in a great community. I love playing with the kids and reading them stories. They help to make me feel young.'