Cardinal Glemp Improving After Two Operations
Cardinal Jozef Glemp, leader of Poland’s powerful Roman Catholic Church, was in serious condition Wednesday but improving after two emergency operations for bleeding in his digestive system, officials said.
Glemp, 61, first underwent surgery Tuesday. Doctors discovered a massive hemorrhage in the alimentary canal, which comprises the esophagus, stomach and intestines, the state PAP news service said. He then underwent a second operation late Tuesday night and early Wednesday.
“After the (second) operation, the condition of the patient underwent improvement. Nevertheless, it is still described as serious,” according to a joint statement released by doctors and the church.
Glemp is in the intensive care unit of a large public hospital in the Praga section of Warsaw.
A priest at the cardinal’s residence, declining to give his name, said Glemp first was taken to the hospital when he felt faint Tuesday and requested to see a doctor.
President Wojciech Jaruzelski visited Glemp in the hospital Tuesday night and “closely follows the course of Cardinal Glemp’s treatment,” PAP said.
Glemp, primate since 1981 and a cardinal since 1983, is spiritual leader to the more than 90% of Poland’s 38 million people who regard themselves as Roman Catholics.
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