My impression is that the situation has improved, and I hope that he will soon recover completely,’ says undersecretary of the Vatican Dicastery for Culture and Education.

The pope is susceptible to lung infections after he developed pleurisy as an adult and had part of a lung removed at age 21. In addition, Francis has been hospitalized for bronchitis multiple times, and in 2023 underwent abdominal surgery and received treatment for pneumonia earlier that year.