Vatican announces Pope Francis undergoing abdominal surgery in Rome to address intestinal problems.

The Vatican has announced that Pope Francis is undergoing abdominal surgery to treat an intestinal blockage at a hospital in Rome on Wednesday.

According to Vatican News, the Holy See Press Office released a statement saying that the medical team assisting the Holy Father had decided upon the operation over the past few days due to an incisional laparocele (hernia) causing recurrent, painful, and worsening sub-occlusive syndromes.

The statement further added that the 86-year-old Pope would be undergoing a laparotomy and abdominal wall surgery under general anaesthesia at Gemelli Hospital in Rome. He will stay there a few more days to allow for a normal post-operative course and full functional recovery.

This is the third time that Pope Francis has been admitted to this medical facility.

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Pope Francis arrives for his weekly general audience in St. Peter’s Square at The Vatican on Wednesday, June 7. (AP/Andrew Medichini)

In July 2021, Francis had undergone surgery at Gemelli Hospital to remove 13 inches of his large intestine due to severe inflammation and narrowing of the colon. The Vatican said that his diverticulosis, or bulges in his intestinal wall, which had prompted the 2021 surgery, had returned, in an interview with The Associated Press in January.

The Argentine pope had already had part of one lung removed when he was a young man, and he also suffers from sciatica nerve pain. In late March, he underwent treatment with intravenous antibiotics when he spent three days at Gemelli for an acute case of bronchitis. He emerged on April 1 saying, “Still alive!”

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