The Vatican has issued an update after Pope Leo XIV had surgery following a lung cancer diagnosis. In its message, the Vatican said: "The operation was successful, and there were no complications. After the operation, the Pope awoke normally and returned after a brief period of observation to his room."
Successful 90-minute surgery
The doctors said the surgery lasted about 90 minutes and was successful. The Pope is now expected to remain at the Gemelli Hospital in Rome for a week after a "peaceful night," the message added.
Speaking previously about the Pope's conditions, Professor Stefano Margaritora and Dr Luigi Carbone said: "To ensure a radical resection, the lower lobe of the right lung was removed using a video-assisted technique." Tissue examined during the operation confirmed the diagnosis "suspected from tests conducted beforehand", the Vatican said.
Audiences cancelled and stay details
The Vatican had cancelled all of Leo's audiences until October 20. The Gemelli hospital has a papal apartment that past popes used whenever needing hospitalisation, complete with a private chapel on the 10th floor. However, Leo is due to stay in a nearby room, as the papal apartment is currently undergoing renovations, according to the Vatican press office.
The Pope revealed the diagnosis himself during his Sunday noon prayer and announced that he would have it removed. According to the NHS, a lung nodule, also known as a pulmonary nodule, is a small lump detected on an X-ray or CT scan of the chest. A lung nodule appears as a white spot, up to 30mm across, on the black background of normal lung tissue. Most lung nodules do not cause symptoms.
Background and reactions
Pope Leo is seen as a reformer in the footsteps of Pope Francis and was part of one of the late pontiff's biggest reforms in Rome - adding three women to the voting bloc that decides on bishop nominations to go before the pope.
He clashed with US President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance over their treatment of migrants before his election. He re-shared posts on X that took aim at the administration's approach to immigration, with one stating: "There is nothing remotely Christian, American, or morally defensible about a policy that takes children away from their parents and warehouses them in cages."
President Trump congratulated Pope Leo on social media after his election was confirmed, describing it as "a great honour for our country". "Congratulations to Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, who was just named Pope," he wrote on Truth Social. "It is such an honour to realise that he is the first American Pope. What excitement, and what a Great Honor for our Country. I look forward to meeting Pope Leo XIV. It will be a very meaningful moment!"
