The 45-year-old man, who went missing when he was in his twenties, had been a doctor in Spain before his disappearance in 1995.
After fifteen years without any trace being found, Carlos Sanchez Ortiz De Salazar was declared dead in 2010.
But in a shocking turn of events, the doctor has been discovered by mushroom pickers in a forest in Tuscany, Italy.
According to reports, he shows them his passport and told them: ‘I am Spanish, my name is Carlos and I have been here for twenty years.’
The foragers, worried about Mr Salazar’s wellbeing, contacted an Italian missing persons charity, which traced the man back to his parents.
Sadly, on arriving in Tuscany, Salazar has disappeared once more, and has not been seen since.
As a 26-year-old medical graduate, Salazar apparently suffered with severe depression when he disappeared from his house in the 90s.
His mother Amelia, 65, said: ‘He's alive and that is the important thing. We will respect his wishes and his freedom, but we won't go home until we have at least given him a hug, even for a few moments.’
According to the foragers that found him, Salazar has three large cans full of rainwater, and had created a shelter from tarpaulin strung between trees.
More than a third of Italy, despite being a densely populated country, is covered with forests.