Pope Francis remained hospitalized Tuesday and is now battling pneumonia in both lungs.
The diagnosis was made following a CT scan, CNN reported.
“The control chest CT scan that the Holy Father underwent this afternoon … demonstrated the onset of bilateral pneumonia that required further pharmacological therapy,” the Vatican said in a statement Tuesday.
Pope Francis, 88, has struggled with lung-related issues in the past.
He received the Eucharist in the morning and “alternated rest with prayer and reading texts” throughout Tuesday, the statement said.
The Vatican said Tuesday, “Pope Francis is in good spirits.”
“He gives thanks for the closeness he feels at this moment and asks, with a grateful heart, that we continue to pray for him,” the statement said.
Worshipers outside the Vatican were concerned about the pope’s condition.
“We certainly wish for him to get better very quickly,” the Rev. Tyler Carter, a priest from the U.S., told Reuters. “He is our father and our shepherd, and so we want his continued health and blessing.”
