Pope Francis, who turns 87 in a few weeks and had part of one lung removed as a young man, came down with the flu last week and is on antibiotics. Photo / AP
Pope Francis said on Thursday he is suffering from acute, infectious bronchitis and that doctors recommended he cancel his planned visit to Dubai this weekend to avoid the quick changes in temperature that would be involved.
“As you can see, I’m alive,” Francis quipped at the start
of an audience with participants of a symposium on healthcare ethics.
It was one of nine audiences Francis had scheduled for Thursday, suggesting he was still managing to carry a heavy workload despite his illness.
Francis, who turns 87 in a few weeks and had part of one lung removed as a young man, came down with the flu last week and is on antibiotics. On Tuesday, the Vatican announced he was cancelling his planned participation in the UN climate conference on doctors’ orders.
“The reason is that it’s very hot there, and you go from heat to air conditioning,” Francis told the healthcare workers. “Thank God it wasn’t pneumonia. It’s a very acute, infectious bronchitis.”
