Pope Francis, 86, is “feeling good”, “conscious” and even “joking” after the operation he underwent on Wednesday for an abdominal hernia, the surgeon who performed the operation said, according to AFP.

The “benign” operation, which was decided on Tuesday, will have no consequences and Pope Jorge Bergoglio does not suffer from any other pathology, Professor Sergio Alfieri told a press conference at the Gemelli Hospital in Rome.

The operation, which lasted three hours and involved a dozen doctors, involved a laparotomy (incision of the abdomen) and the installation of a prosthesis. This comes after the first colon surgery in July 2021, after which the bishop of Rome was hospitalized for about ten days.

For several months, the head of the Catholic Church, whose health appears to be becoming increasingly fragile, has been suffering from severe pain in the intestines due to a herniated abdominal wall that formed on the scars from previous operations.

As a “precautionary measure,” the Pope’s audience has been canceled until June 18 because the operation will require “several days” of hospitalization, the Vatican said.

The Holy See said in recent days that the Pope’s medical team had decided that surgery was needed and expected him to remain in hospital for “several days” to recover.

On Tuesday, the Sovereign Pontiff conducted a 40-minute examination at Gemelli Hospital.

The Pope, who celebrated the tenth anniversary of his pontificate in March, often uses a wheelchair or cane to get around because of constant pain in his knees.

In July 2021, part of his colon was removed during surgery to treat a painful intestinal condition called diverticulitis. Earlier this year, he said the condition had returned.

Last year, the Pope said he did not want to have knee surgery because general anesthesia for colon surgery causes unpleasant side effects.