Indian Cardinal Oswald Gracias told The Tablet the story indicates there are people who want to damage the Pope.

"It's the first thought that came to me. Somebody is trying to weaken the Pope's position and to indicate 'Ok now that's it, he is just here for a short time'," said Cardinal Gracias.

The cardinal thought the motivation for the story could be to try to "put the brakes" on the Pope's reforms.

"It has something to do with his popularity. What he is saying is just the Gospel so I can't see why they are upset up about it," he added.

Cardinal Gracias is a member of the Pope's advisory "C9" council of cardinals.

German Cardinal Walter Kasper said of the story: "It's evident to me that some people don't like this Pope. Maybe they were trying to influence us (in the synod)."

"Certain people, both inside and outside the Church, are nervous about the outcome of the synod," he said.

The tumour story was an attempt to "upset" the final days of deliberation at the gathering, the cardinal said.

The story alleging Pope Francis saw a Japanese neurosurgeon about a brain tumour was denounced by the Vatican as "completely false".

The editor of Quotidiano Nazionale, the Italian newspaper that first published the story, has denied assertions that he is part of a conspiracy against the Pope.

Andrea Cangini said that "time will tell who was right"—the newspaper or the Vatican.

Cangini said he would not violate a confidentiality agreement with his source for the story.

Brain cancer specialist Dr Takanori Fukushima released a statement saying that he had never medically examined the Pope.

Sources

• The Tablet
• Catholic Culture
• The Telegraph
• Image: Church Militant

As reports of the story originally published in Italy's Quotidiano Nazione spread around the world, the Vatican issued three denials.

The report was called "a grave act of irresponsibility, absolutely inexcusable and unconscionable".

Quotidiano Nazionale reported on its front page on Wednesday that a Japanese doctor and his team had secretly flown from Tuscany to the Vatican on a helicopter bearing the Holy See's white-and-yellow flag to examine the Pope "some months ago".

Under the headline "The Pope is Sick", it said the Argentine pontiff was diagnosed with "a small dark spot on the brain", but that it was curable without surgery.

Dismissing the article, Vatican spokesman Fr Federico Lombardi, SJ, said: "I am able to confirm that the Pope is in good health."

The spokesman said he had checked directly with the Pope and other Vatican officials.

"No Japanese doctor has visited the Pope in the Vatican and there have been no examinations of the type indicated in the article," Fr Lombardi said.

The spokesman challenged anyone who thinks the Pontiff is seriously ill to try keeping up with him.

Quotidiano based its story largely on the supposed account of a nurse who reportedly saw medical notes under Francis's real name, Jorge Mario Bergoglio.

Japanese neurosurgeon Takanori Fukushima did meet Pope Francis, but it was in October, 2014, according to a post on the surgeon's Japanese blog, which does not indicate any professional papal connection.

Andrea Cangini, the director of Quotidiano, said he had anticipated the Vatican reaction.

"This denial is understandable and to be expected," he said.

"We waited a long time before publishing the report in order to carry out every possible check. We don't have the slightest doubt that it is founded."

The Pope has appeared in good health in recent months apart from some leg pain due to sciatica, for which he undergoes regular therapy.

Sources

• Reuters
• AFP
• Image: Our Sunday Visitor

Jessica Mann, 33, from Michigan, is due to have her fourth baby this month.

Her condition means that she was advised that the birth be by caesarean section, for which she will need full anaesthesia, which is a risk for her.

To reduce such risks in future, a specialist advised Mrs Mann to have a tubal ligation while under the anaesthetic.

But her local hospital, Genesys Regional Medical Center, which is Catholic, denied the request on religious grounds.

The US Conference of Catholic Bishops has issued a set of ethical and religious directives for Catholic hospitals that bar the institutions from promoting contraceptives, providing abortions, or doing procedures with no other intention but to sterilise the patient.

Last year, Gensys Regional Medical Center decided to halt all planned sterilisations to "strengthen our alignment with the Catholic Ethical and Religious Directives", according to a memo to staff obtained by the American Civil Liberties Union.

The ACLU has partnered with Mrs Mann and her husband James and has applied pressure to the hospital.

The Manns, through the ACLU, sent a letter to the hospital threatening legal action and demanding the case be reconsidered.

The hospital again refused.

Mrs Mann said she is surprised and upset by the hospital's decision.

"And there was anger at the fact that they can disregard medical issues for their religious beliefs," she said.

The family is in the process of finding a new hospital and doctor while the ACLU presses their case.

Mr Mann said: "There's no good reason why we shouldn't be able to keep our doctor, who we trust and who knows our situation, and the hospital she's affiliated with."

"Hospitals should offer the best medical practices possible, and they should let their patients make decisions in the best interests of their health and well-being with their doctors.

"Religious directives made by nonmedical professionals have no place in that picture."

Sources

• Washington Post
• Refinery29.com
• Image: Refinery29.com