Pope Francis’ Doctors Worried After Breathing Crisis and Considered Stopping Treatment to 'Let Him Go'

Just days after Pope Francis was released from the hospital following a lengthy hospitalization, one of his doctors revealed that following a particularly serious breathing crisis, his medical team briefly considered ending treatment.

Dr. Sergio Alfieri, the head of the pope’s medical team at Rome’s Gemelli hospital, told Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera that the 88-year-old pontiff experienced a “bronchospasm" and inhaled his own vomit on Feb. 28, reported the Associated Press and USA Today.

According to the Cleveland Clinic, bronchospasms occur when the muscles in the airways of your lungs tighten, which results in "wheezing, coughing, and other symptoms."

The medical episode was so severe that doctors feared he "might not survive the night."

“We needed to choose whether to stop and let him go, or to push it and attempt with all of the possible drugs and the treatments, taking the very high risk of damaging other organs,’’ Alfieri told the Italian outlet, per the AP. “In the end, that is the path we chose.”

According to Alfieri, the pope's personal health care assistant Massimiliano Strappetti told them to "try everything," reported CNN.

“No one gave up," the doctor added.

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On Sunday, March 23, the Vatican released a statement confirming that Francis — who was initially admitted for bronchitis and "diagnostic tests," but then developed double pneumonia — had been discharged from the hospital.

That same day, the pope made a public appearance on a balcony of his hospital. In a video obtained by Good Morning America, he could be seen waving to the crowd and sharing some words of gratitude.

Speaking with the Italian newspaper, the pope's doctor shared that throughout the medical crisis, the pontiff wanted to make sure the public knew what was going on.

“From the first day, he asked us to tell him the truth and he wanted us to tell the truth about his condition," Alfieri said, according to CNN. "Nothing was ever modified or omitted."

The AP previously reported that Alfieri said the pontiff will require at least two months of rest, rehabilitation and convalescence, while also being advised to avoid meeting in groups.