“Explainer: What kind of surgery did Pope Francis have?”

This is from the Jesuit magazine America.

Doctors say the bowel problems that the 84-year-old pope was experiencing are very common in older people, although only about 10% to 20% of people with similar problems require surgery.

According to the Vatican, Pope Francis had the left part of his bowel removed in a three-hour operation Sunday at a Rome hospital. Officials said it was required because the pope’s bowel had narrowed.

Dr. Manish Chand, an associate professor of surgery at University College London who specializes in colorectal surgery, said the pope had likely been experiencing painful symptoms long before the bowel procedure. He was not involved in the pope's care.

Although minor symptoms can be treated with antibiotics, Chand said in some older people, the pain becomes so severe that removing part of the colon is the only way to fix it.

“That leads to scarring of the colon, which results in a narrowing part of the colon,” Chand said, explaining that prevents normal bowel movements. “There aren’t any drugs we can use to remedy the situation, so the only way to rid patients of the pain is by removing that narrowed portion of the bowel and join the two healthy ends of the bowel together.”

“This is a major operation, so as with any big operation, you want to make sure a patient’s heart and lungs are recovering and progressing the way they should after something like this,” said Dr. Walter Longo, chief of colon and rectal surgery at Yale University School of Medicine. Longo said the primary concern is ensuring that the two parts of the bowel that surgeons have stitched together remain attached.

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Chand said if there are no complications, he would expect the pope to experience an almost immediate improvement in his quality of life and be back to eating regularly within days.

Given the pope’s previous respiratory issues — he is missing part of his right lung after having it removed following a severe bout of pneumonia in his youth — Chand said doctors would need to monitor his breathing carefully.

“In the case of having previous problems with the lung, there is always a concern after the major abdominal surgery of the risk of getting a chest infection," Chand said. He said the pain might make it difficult for the pope to breathe deeply, preventing the lungs from expanding fully and getting rid of any fluid that could cause problems.