Pope Leo XIV Returns to Public View After Surgery for a Lung Tumor

Pope Leo XIV left Rome’s Gemelli hospital on Saturday, four days after surgeons removed part of his right lung to take out a cancerous tumor, and the Vatican said he would lead the traditional Sunday Angelus prayer from a window of the Apostolic Palace, according to Agence France-Presse, Euronews and Vatican News.

The 71-year-old pope had the operation on Tuesday, October 13. Euronews, citing the surgeon, reported that doctors removed the lower lobe of the right lung because of a pulmonary adenocarcinoma, a type of lung cancer. The tumor was discovered by chance, AFP and Euronews reported: a routine medical examination turned up a small nodule, and doctors recommended removing it. The pope disclosed the finding himself during his Sunday noon blessing on October 11, the Associated Press reported.

A medical note signed by his personal physician, Luigi Carbone, and the head of thoracic surgery at Gemelli, Stefano Margaritora, said the pope had been judged fit for discharge. Earlier in the week, the doctors said his post-operative recovery allowed him to carry out his daily activities entirely on his own, Euronews reported. On Friday he celebrated Mass in the hospital and, from his room, telephoned Russian President Vladimir Putin to urge a ceasefire in the occupied Ukrainian city of Oleshky so that civilians could leave and aid could enter, AFP and Euronews reported.

Margaritora told Vatican media that the pope’s condition at discharge was satisfactory and that his lung was re-expanding on schedule. He estimated convalescence at a couple of weeks, according to Euronews. AFP reported that doctors were still awaiting test results that would determine whether further treatment is needed.

The illness has raised questions about the pope’s travel plans. He canceled audiences through October 20, and a trip to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru planned for November 6 to 17 was described by AFP as uncertain. The pope spent about two decades as a missionary in Peru before his election. Margaritora said he saw no clinical reason the trip could not go ahead, Euronews reported, while Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin said earlier in the week that plans, at least for this trip, might have to be adjusted to the pope’s health, the Associated Press reported.

The Vatican has been careful not to promise a quick return to a full schedule. Euronews reported that the pope is expected to resume his duties gradually, and his surgeon described the coming weeks as a period of convalescence.

The case also shows how such a tumor can be caught early by chance. Doctors said the spot at the base of the lung was visible on a routine abdominal examination done for other reasons, and doctors recommended removing the nodule once it was found.