Tragic Calm: At 88, Pope Francis Didn’t Suffer But Left With One Wounded Wish
By Chijioke Courage Nkemjika
VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis passed away peacefully after suffering a sudden stroke, his personal doctor has revealed. Dr. Sergio Alfieri, who treated the 88-year-old Pope during his recent hospital stay, said there was nothing that could have saved him.
Dr. Sergio Alfieri, who led the medical team that cared for the Pope during his recent battle with double pneumonia, told Italy’s *Corriere della Sera* that he was called to the Vatican early Monday morning. By the time he arrived, just after 5:30 a.m., it was already too late.
“When I entered his room, his eyes were open,” Dr. Alfieri said. “He wasn’t breathing with difficulty, but he didn’t respond when I called his name or even when I tried painful stimuli. He was in a coma. In that moment, I knew there was nothing more we could do.”
The Vatican later confirmed that Pope Francis died from a sudden stroke that led to coma and irreversible heart failure.
Dr. Alfieri said the Pope likely wouldn’t have survived a transfer to hospital. “Some officials thought about moving him, but he would have died on the way,” he told *La Repubblica*. “Even if we had done a CT scan, it wouldn’t have changed the outcome. It was one of those strokes that take everything from you in an hour.”
Just two days earlier, the doctor had visited Francis, who was in good spirits. He even brought him a slice of pie in a flavor the Pope liked.
“He told me, ‘I’m feeling well. I’ve started working again, and I’m happy about it,’” Dr. Alfieri recalled. “He wanted to remain at home, to continue being the Pope until the very end. And he did just that.”
But the Pope did share one final regret.
“He was sad that he wasn’t able to wash the feet of the prisoners at the Rome jail, something he had planned for April 17,” the doctor said. “That was the last thing he said to me: ‘This time, I couldn’t do it.’”
Pope Francis is now lying in state in St Peter’s Basilica, where thousands have lined up to pay their respects. His funeral will take place Saturday in the square outside the Basilica. Prince William will represent the British Royal Family at the service.
In a break from papal tradition, Francis will become the first pope in more than 100 years to be buried outside the Vatican. He will be laid to rest at the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome. After the funeral, nine days of mourning will follow before the College of Cardinals begins the process of selecting his successor.
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