Pope Leo XIV underwent thoracic surgery at Rome’s Gemelli hospital on Tuesday afternoon, Oct. 13, and surgeons removed the lower lobe of his right lung, according to a statement from Dr. Luigi Carbone and Prof. Stefano Margaritora released by the Holy See Press Office and published by Vatican News. The statement said an examination of tissue during the operation confirmed the diagnosis of lung adenocarcinoma, a type of lung cancer, as suspected from tests before the surgery. The doctors called the operation successful and said there were no complications.
What the Vatican said on Tuesday
The statement said the lower lobe was removed with a video-assisted technique “to ensure a radical resection.” The pope was in the operating room for about three hours, and the operation itself lasted about 90 minutes. He woke normally, and after a short period of observation returned to his room on the hospital’s 10th floor, the statement said. Prof. Margaritora led the surgical team.
Post-operation examinations will be carried out on the removed tissue in the coming days, the Vatican News report said. No change had been communicated to the previously announced hospital stay of about one week. The Holy See Press Office was expected to give an update on Wednesday morning on how the pope spent the night and on any test results. Matteo Bruni, the press office director, said the pope asked for dinner and spent the evening with his secretaries and other Vatican staff.
What had been said before the surgery
On Sunday, Oct. 11, after the Angelus, the pope, who is 71, said doctors had found a small, localized nodule in his lung, detected at a very early stage, and that on their advice he had decided to have it removed. The Vatican did not say then whether the nodule was benign or cancerous; Tuesday’s statement is the first to name the diagnosis. Gemelli is the hospital where Pope Francis was operated on in 2021.
What is not known yet
- The stage of the cancer and whether further treatment is planned. The Vatican News report of the statement does not give a stage or a treatment plan.
- The results of the post-operation examinations of the removed tissue.
- When the pope will return to his duties. On Oct. 11 the Philadelphia Inquirer reported that Vatican officials did not expect his Nov. 6-17 trip to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru to be affected; Tuesday’s statement did not address the trip.