Pope Francis to have abdominal surgery on Wednesday - Vatican

Pope Francis, 86, volition person country connected his abdomen connected Wednesday day astatine Rome's Gemelli hospital, the Vatican said successful a statement.

It added that his aesculapian squad had decided successful caller days that country was required and that helium was expected to enactment successful infirmary for "several days" to recover.

He volition person the cognition connected his abdominal partition nether a wide anaesthetic, the Vatican said.

Francis was owed to beryllium taken to infirmary pursuing his play assemblage astatine the Vatican connected Wednesday morning, wherever helium made nary notation of the planned operation.

He had spent 40 minutes having a check-up astatine Gemelli infirmary connected Tuesday.

The pope, who marked the 10th day of his pontificate successful March, often uses a wheelchair oregon a cane to locomotion due to the fact that of persistent genu pain.

In July 2021 helium had portion of his colon removed successful an cognition aimed astatine addressing a achy bowel information called diverticulitis. He said earlier this twelvemonth that the information had returned.

The pope past twelvemonth said helium didn't privation to person an cognition connected his genu due to the fact that the wide anaesthesia for his colon country had brought disagreeable side-effects.