Pope Leo XIV’s surgery confirmed that he has lung cancer and he had the lower lobe of his right lung removed, the Vatican said Tuesday.
The tests confirmed a diagnosis of lung adenocarcinoma, the Vatican said in a medical bulletin after the surgery. It said the diagnosis had been suspected by preoperative tests and was confirmed during surgery.
The 71-year-old was in the operating room for about 3 hours, the statement said. The surgery itself lasted approximately 90 minutes. “The surgery was successful, and there were no complications,” the statement said.
Leo underwent surgery Tuesday to remove a lung nodule and the Vatican said the operation was completed “successfully, on schedule and as planned.”
Leo had walked into Rome's Gemelli hospital through the main entrance earlier in the day and waved to dozens of well-wishers who had gathered to greet him. The surgery was performed by a team led by Gemelli’s chief thoracic surgeon, Dr. Stefano Margaritora.
Pope Leo XIV arrives at Rome's Gemelli University Hospital ahead of surgery to remove a nodule on his lung, later found to be cancerous
(Photo: Handout / Vatican Media / AFP)
The American pontiff has offered a rare level of transparency about the first publicly disclosed major health problem of his 17-month papacy. He revealed the discovery of the small, localized nodule during his Sunday noon prayer and announced that he would have it removed.
Oncologists said prior to the operation that even if the nodule turned out to be cancerous, Leo’s prognosis is “excellent” since it will have been removed at an early stage.
The Vatican on Monday canceled all Leo’s audiences through Oct. 20.
While Gemelli has a specific papal apartment that past popes have used, complete with a private chapel on the 10th floor, Leo will actually be staying in a nearby room since the papal apartment is currently undergoing renovations, according to the Vatican press office.
“I think he has had a bit of luck. They found something that was asymptomatic — a lung nodule, possibly a tumor. He might call it something else; we call it luck,” he said.