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Pope’s condition shows ‘slight improvement,’ Vatican says

update

Catholic faithful attend a nightly rosary prayer service for the health of Pope Francis in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Feb. 26, 2025.
Catholic faithful attend a nightly rosary prayer service for the health of Pope Francis in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Feb. 26, 2025.

The Vatican said Pope Francis slept well overnight and was resting Thursday as he remained in a Rome hospital for treatment of pneumonia in both lungs.

That update followed one late Wednesday in which the Vatican reported "slight improvement" in the 88-year-old pope’s condition.

The Vatican has not specified if the pope is still considered to be in critical condition, and said Wednesday his prognosis was "guarded."

It noted that a "mild kidney insufficiency" reported days earlier had been resolved.

Pope Francis was admitted to the hospital on Feb. 14. The hospital stay is his longest during his time as pope.

He is prone to lung infections after having part of a lung removed when he was a young man.

His illness has prompted Catholics to gather in Vatican City, his native Argentina and other areas of the world to hold prayer vigils.

Francis has been pope since 2013 when his predecessor, Pope Benedict, resigned.

Some information for this report came from The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters.

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