(ZENIT News / Rome, 25.03.2025).- It was February 28 when Pope Francis was at the edge of death for the first time. This is what one of the two doctors in charge of treating the Pope, Sergio Alfieri, admits and recounts: «Yes, it was the worst moment. For the first time, I saw tears in the eyes of some of the people around him. People that, as I understood during this period of hospitalization, sincerely loved him, like a father. We were all aware that the situation was getting worse and there was a risk that he wouldn’t be able to recover.»
Dr Alfieri’s words were collected in an interview given and published by the Italian newspaper Corrière della Sera on Tuesday, March 25. What did they do in face of the Pope’s serious situation? «We had to choose between letting him go or trying every medication and therapy possible, running the very high risk of damaging other organs. And in the end, we took this path,» he replied.
In regard to who took the decision, Alfieri said: “The Holy Father always decided. He delegated any type of health decision to Massimiliano Strapett, his personal health assistant, who knows perfectly the Pontiff’s will.”
The Pope said to the doctors: “Try everything, don’t give up.” It’s what all of us also thought. And no one gave up,” said Alfieri.
In regard to the Pope knowing that he could die, Alfieri answered: “Yes, because he was also always alert. Even when his condition worsened, he was completely conscious. That night was terrible, like us, he knew it, that perhaps he wouldn’t survive the night. We saw a man who was suffering. But from the first day he asked us to tell the truth, and he wanted us to tell him the truth about his condition.”
For the greater part of the 37 days that Pope Francis spent in the hospital, medical reports were issued; some of them were detailed. In this regard, Alfieri said: “We communicated the medical part to the secretaries and they added the rest of the information, which the Pope then approved. Nothing was ever modified or omitted. He has people who are now as family; they are always with him.”
In regard to the first possibility of his death, the Pope said: For days we ran the risk of damaging the kidneys and the bone marrow, but we kept going, then the body responded to the treatments and the lung infection improved.”
However, that was only one of the two occasions the Pope was at the edge of death: “We were coming out of the hardest moment; while Pope Francis was eating, he regurgitated and aspired. It was the second really critical moment because in these cases, if not rescued promptly, there is the risk of sudden death, in addition to complications in the lungs, which were already the most compromised organs.” And Alfieri specified: “it was terrible, we really thought we wouldn’t succeed.”
In this second moment, the Pope was also conscious of what might happen. “He was always conscious of everything but I think that his awareness was also the reason that kept him alive,” said Alfieri, adding that “I believe that the fact that the whole world was praying for him also contributed to this.”
The interviewer asked Alfieri if what he just affirmed he did as a believer, to which the doctor answered: “There is a scientific publication according to which prayers give strength to the sick, in this case, the whole world began to pray. I can say that twice the situation was lost and then something like a miracle occurred. He was certainly a very cooperative patient. He submitted to all the therapies without ever complaining.”
That the Pope was not well before February 14 was already publicly noticed. How were they able to convince him to go to the hospital? Dr Alfieri responded: “He had been sick for days, but he resisted because he probably wanted to respect his Jubilee commitments. When he began to breathe with ever greater difficulty, he realized he couldn’t wait anymore. He arrived at the Gemelli with much pain but, perhaps, also somewhat annoyed. However, at the end of a few hours he recovered his good mood.”
A proof of that recovered good mood was his interaction through greetings. One morning he was greeted with a “Good morning, Holy Father,” to which he responded ”good morning holy son.” He went on and it was his humour, especially the whole demonstration of his human soul. He often says: “I’m still alive,” adding immediately: “Don’t forget to live and stay in a good mood.” He has a tired body, but his mind is that of a 50-yar-old man. He also demonstrated it during the last week of his hospitalization,” said Alfieri.
In the press conference of Saturday, March 22, the day in which the Pope’s discharge was communicated, it was acknowledged that he had spent two stable weeks. What happened when the Pope began to feel better? Alfieri replied: “As soon as he began to feel better, he asked to go around the room. We asked him if he wanted us to close the patients’ rooms, but instead of that he looked around him seeking the look of other patients. He moved around in a wheelchair. One day he left his room five times, perhaps even more. And then the night of the pizza arrived.”
What do you mean by the “nigh of the pizza?” “He gave money to one of his collaborators and offered pizza to those that helped them that day. It was a continuous improvement and I understood that he had decided to return to Santa Marta, when, one morning, he said to me: “I continue alive, when are we going home?” The next day he gazed out the window, looked for a microphone and addressed the lady of the yellow flowers. “It seemed to me a clear sign that I’m back and totally recovered,” he said.
Dr Alfieri was asked if the Pope knew that many thought he was dead. To which he answered: “Yes, he was always informed about what was happening and always reacted with his usual irony.”
Dr Alfieri said he will never forget “When, in the most difficult moment, he took my hand for a few minutes as if seeking consolation.” He also said that it struck him a lot “When I saw him come out of the room on the tenth floor of the Gemelli dressed in white. It’s the emotion of seeing the man become the Pope again.”
In regard to the danger that continues to be somewhat latent, given the protected period of convalescence, Alfieri concluded: “In this stage there are certainly prescriptions that must be observed, such as avoiding contact with groups of people or with children that might be vehicles of new contagions. When he left, we talked and promised not to waste the effort we had made. But he is the Pope; we are not the ones who can dictate his behaviour.”
