The pope’s improving condition confirmed with a chest X-ray, Vatican says

Pope Francis ‘ recovery from double pneumonia continued Wednesday as a chest X-ray confirmed improvement, two days after doctors declared he’s no longer in imminent danger of death.

The latest medical bulletin said the pope’s condition remained stable, but indicated a complex picture considering his overall fragility.

The Vatican said the 88-year-old Francis again followed its spiritual retreat remotely, and resumed physical and respiratory therapy after a quiet night. He continues to receive high flows of oxygen through nasal tubes during the day, and a non-invasive mechanical mask to aid his rest at night.

His 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.

Francis faces important milestones this week.

On Thursday, he marks the 12th anniversary of his election as the 266th pope. The Holy See hasn’t said how the anniversary, a public holiday in the Vatican, might be commemorated. No medical bulletin will be issued.

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 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 then was 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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AP writer Colleen Barry contributed.

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