ROME — Pope Francis has canceled his audiences scheduled for Saturday morning because he has a slight fever, the Vatican said.

“The Holy Father’s audiences scheduled for this morning are canceled due to a mild flu,” it said in a statement.

The pope is due to travel on Friday to Dubai for the COP28 conference on climate change, a global challenge that he has deeply cared about during his papacy.

Pope Francis will turn 87 next month. When asked about his health in a recent interview - after setbacks that included abdominal surgery just a few months ago to repair a hernia and remove intestinal scarring - Francis quipped in reply what has become his standard line - “Still alive, you know.”