Pope to be released from hospital on Friday

Rome, Jun 15 (EFE).- Pope Francis will be discharged from Rome’s Gemelli Hospital on Friday after undergoing abdominal surgery just over a week ago, the Vatican reported.

“The medical staff reports that Pope Francis rested well during the night. The clinical course is proceeding normally. The results of the blood tests are within the normal range,” Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said Thursday.

The Pope thanked the staff and team who performed the operation on June 7 and then paid a visit to the Paediatric Oncology and Children’s Neurosurgery ward where some young patients gave the pontiff drawings they had been working on while he was in recovery.

During his tour of the hospital, the Pope thanked medical professionals for their efforts “to alleviate the suffering of others, not only with medication, but also with tenderness and humanity.”

The Vatican has provisionally canceled all events in the Pope’s diary until June 18.

Brazil president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva is traveling to Italy to meet the pontiff next week. EFE

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