Pope Francis joked, “The program keeps me moving.” (file)
Vatican:
Pope Francis on Sunday described an “acute and strong” pneumonia that caused him to be hospitalized last month, but the 86-year-old pontiff said he was determined to continue traveling.
“I felt a strong pain at the end of the audience (March 29),” the pope told reporters on the papal plane upon his return to Rome from Budapest, where the pontiff made a three-day visit.
“I didn’t lose consciousness but I had a high fever” and doctors “took me to the hospital immediately,” he said.
Francis called it “acute and severe pneumonia in the lower part of the lungs”.
In March the Pope spent three nights in hospital in Rome and was released on 1 April after treatment with antibiotics.
He regularly fields questions from Vatican reporters on the flight home after papal visits.
Argentina’s pope, who had a portion of his lung removed as a youth, has suffered health problems in recent years, and this was his second stay in the hospital since 2021.
“The body responded well to the treatment, thank God,” said the pope, who was able to attend services on Holy Week and Easter following his hospitalization.
Asked about his next visits, Pope Francis confirmed his intention to visit Lisbon in early August for World Youth Day.
“I hope I’m able to do that,” he said.
Lisbon is followed by scheduled trips to Marseille and Mongolia.
He joked, “The program drives me forward.”
The health of Francis, who was made pope in 2013, has been the subject of intense speculation over the past year, while persistent knee pain has forced the octogenarian to use a wheelchair.
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