MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Pope Francis recovering well after colon surgery

The Buenos Aires-born pontiff had a lung lobe removed at age 21

Pope Francis was recovering well after undergoing colon surgery Sunday at the Gemelli Polyclinic hospital in Rome, according to the first medical report.

 “The Pope, hospitalized in the afternoon at the Gemelli Polyclinic, underwent a scheduled surgical intervention at night for a diverticular sigmoid stenosis,” Vatican Chief Spokesman Matteo Bruni announced in a statement.

Francis ”reacted well to the operation performed under general anesthesia...,” the statement went on. The 84-year-old native of Buenos Aires will be hospitalized for 5 days.

According to medical experts, the goal of this type of surgery is to reduce the problems caused by diverticula, which are small hernias in the wall of the colon with a wide spectrum of clinical manifestations including bleeding, potentially painful inflammation (diverticulitis) or its associated complications (obstruction or perforation).

Corriere della Sera reported the Pope arrived at the Gemelli in his car, which left him discreetly at the entrance of the hospital. He was accompanied by a very small entourage.

Francis is staying at the same room where Pope John Paul II was housed after a benign tumor was removed from his colon in 1992. The Pope is considered a risk patient, taking into account that at age 21, in 1957, he suffered acute pleurisy and surgeons had to partially remove his right lung, according to his biographer Austen Ivereigh. He has been vaccinated against covid-19 in January and February.

After a normal Sunday Angelus in St. Peter's Square, Pope Francis was hospitalized in the early afternoon. But the Pontiff sort of hinted what was going to happen: “Near the feast of Saints Peter and Paul, I ask you to pray for the Pope. Pray in a special way: the Pope needs his prayers! Thank you. I know you will,” he had said.