Pope Francis is beginning his 29th consecutive day in the hospital, a day after he marked the 12th anniversary of when he was elected pope following five ballots in a papal conclave.
Pope Francis’ medical staff celebrated the pope’s 12th anniversary with a cake and candles on Thursday while the pope continued his respiratory therapy Thursday afternoon and followed the evenings Lenten spiritual exercises, the Vatican said.
Pope Francis’ condition remained “stationary” on Wednesday with no further updates from the Vatican given on Thursday as tests confirmed his improvement, according to the Vatican.
A chest X-ray performed on Tuesday confirmed improvements recorded over the past few days, the Holy See, the Vatican’s press office, said in its Wednesday evening update.
Faithful pray for Pope Francis in front of Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic in Rome, Thursday, March 13, 2025, where Francis is being treated for bilateral pneumonia since Feb.14.
The pope continues to undergo high-flow oxygen therapy during the day and “noninvasive mechanical ventilation during his night rest,” the Vatican said.
The 88-year-old pontiff will continue “for additional days, the pharmacological medical therapy in a hospital environment” due to the “complexity of the clinical picture and the significant infectious picture presented at hospitalization,” the Vatican said.
Francis’ doctors said there are positive signs of the pontiff’s recovery, but caution remains, according to Vatican sources, after he was admitted to Rome’s Gemelli Hospital on Feb. 14 and was diagnosed with bilateral pneumonia.
