Pope Francis responding well, showing gradual improvement as Vatican holds another Holy Year event without him

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Pope Francis is responding well to treatment and has shown a “gradual, mild improvement” in recent days as he remains in the hospital recovering from double pneumonia, the Vatican said Sunday.

“The night was quiet; the Pope is resting,” the Vatican said in a statement.

Francis, 88, was admitted to Rome’s Gemelli Hospital on Feb. 14 after a week-long bout of bronchitis worsened. Doctors first diagnosed the complex viral, bacterial and fungal respiratory tract infection and subsequently the onset of pneumonia in both lungs.

POPE FRANCIS SHOWS ‘SLIGHT IMPROVEMENT’ DURING FOURTH WEEK IN HOSPITAL, VATICAN SAYS

Pope Francis waves to believers as he leaves the Cercle Cite after a meeting Luxembourg’s Prime Minister during a four-day apostolic journey in Luxembourg and Belgium, in Luxembourg City on September 26, 2024. (Simon Wohlfahrt/AFP/Getty)

This is the fourth Sunday in a row that the pope will not appear for his weekly noon blessing, but the Vatican plans to distribute the message he would have delivered.

The pope’s condition has remained stable, as he has had no fever and good oxygen levels in his blood for several days, doctors said. The doctors said that his stability “as a consequence testifies to a good response to therapy.”

This marks the first time doctors have reported that Francis, who has chronic lung disease and had part of one lung removed when he was younger, was responding well to the prescribed therapies since he was admitted to the hospital more than three weeks ago.

Pope Francis waves from his popemobile after the weekly Angelus prayers, at Saint Peter’s Square in the Vatican on October 20, 2024. (Filippo Monteforte/AFP/Getty)

But his prognosis remains “guarded,” doctors said, meaning he is not yet out of danger.

Despite Francis’ absence, the Vatican’s daily operations continued alongside celebrations of its Holy Year, the once-every-quarter-century Jubilee that brings pilgrims from around the world to Rome. The Holy Year is celebrating volunteers this weekend, and many are extending their pilgrimage to pray for Francis outside the hospital.

POPE FRANCIS CONTINUES TO REST IN HOSPITAL AS VATICAN’S HOLY YEAR PROCEEDS WITHOUT HIM

Pope Francis attends a mass at the Esplanade of Tasitolu in Dili, East Timor, on September 10, 2024. (Tiziana Fabi/Pool/AFP/Getty)

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Canadian Cardinal Michael Czerny will preside over the Holy Year Mass on Sunday for the volunteers.

The pope has been using high flows of supplemental oxygen to help him breathe during the day and a noninvasive mechanical ventilation mask at night.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.