Pope Francis ‘inhaled vomit’ after suffering a bronchial spasm in a major setback in his two-week battle against pneumonia, the Vatican has said. The development marked a reversal in what had been two successive days of increasingly upbeat reports from doctors treating Francis at Rome’s Gemelli hospital since February 14.

The Vatican said Francis, 88, who has been hospitalized for pneumonia, was responding well to treatment and that it was too soon to say how serious the incident was.

The Vatican says Pope Francis suffered a coughing fit that resulted in him breathing in vomit, requiring noninvasive mechanical ventilation.