Pope Francis sees ‘slight improvement’ but remains in critical condition

Nuns pray and a man places a candle in front of a statue of Pope John Paul II outside the Gemelli hospital where Francis is being treated. Photograph: Ciro De Luca/Reuters

Pope Francis, who is in hospital with pneumonia and “mild” kidney failure, remains in a critical condition although there was a “slight improvement” on Monday, the Vatican said.

The pontiff, 88, has not had any further asthma-style attacks and “some laboratory tests have improved”, the Vatican said in a statement on Monday evening.