Vatican says a chest X-ray confirms improvements in the pope's condition

ROME (AP) — A chest X-ray has confirmed improvements in Pope Francis' condition in his fourth week in the hospital for treatment of double pneumonia, the Vatican said Wednesday.

Doctors have said Francis is making slow, gradual improvements and this week declared that he's no longer in imminent danger of death.

During his recovery, the pope continues to receive high flows of oxygen through nasal tubes during the day. He has a non-invasive mechanical mask to aid his rest at night.

The Vatican said the 88-year-old Francis again followed the Vatican’s spiritual retreat remotely, and resumed physical and respiratory therapy after a quiet night.

Francis on Thursday marks an important milestone: the 12th anniversary of his election as pope. The Holy See hasn’t said how the anniversary, which is a public holiday in the Vatican, might be commemorated this year.

The pope’s weekly Wednesday general audience was canceled since the Vatican hierarchy is on retreat this week as part of the Lenten spiritual exercises that have been a mainstay of the Jesuit pope's pontificate.

Doctors have said Francis is making slow, gradual improvements. He was admitted on Feb. 14 with a complex respiratory infection. But doctors remain cautious, given the complexity of his condition and overall fragility, and say he needs to remain hospitalized for an unspecified number of days.

Thursday marks the 12th anniversary of Francis' election as the 266th pope. The former Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio was elected on the fifth ballot of the 2013 conclave that was called after Pope Benedict XVI resigned.

While Francis has praised Benedict's humility in stepping down and said he might follow in his footsteps, more recently he has said the papacy is a job for life.

Another milestone comes Friday, when Francis marks four weeks or 28 days of hospitalization.

St. John Paul II has the record for a hospital stay, at 55 days in 1981 when he underwent a minor surgical operation and was then treated for a cytomegalovirus infection. Francis is on track to equal the second-longest stay, 28 days, which John Paul recorded in 1994 when he had surgery to repair his right hip joint after he fractured his right femur in a fall, according to Gemelli hospital.

The Vatican has released no photos or video of Francis since he was admitted. The pope recorded an audio message last week to thank people for their prayers, though the weakness and breathlessness of his voice made clear how frail he was.

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