Pope Leo said on Sunday that doctors had detected a small growth on his lung during a recent health check and that he would undergo surgery to remove it this week.
The 71-year-old pontiff told pilgrims in St Peter’s Square that the lung nodule was “well-contained” and had been detected at an early stage.
“Recently, during some medical examinations, doctors found a localized nodule in my lung,” Leo said. “It was detected at a very early stage and is well contained.”
He said doctors had advised surgery and that the operation was scheduled for the next few days. The Vatican did not say whether the growth was believed to be malignant.
Lung nodules are small lesions that can be benign. The American Thoracic Society says fewer than 5 percent of lung nodules overall prove cancerous, although the risk varies according to factors such as age, size and smoking history.
“Lung nodules are fairly common and are often benign,” said Stephen Liu, a lung cancer expert at Georgetown University in Washington and division chief of hematology-oncology at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital.
When there is sufficient concern, surgical removal can provide a definitive diagnosis if the procedure is safe given the nodule’s location and the patient’s overall health, Liu said.
The Vatican press office said Leo’s recovery from surgery was expected to take about a week, but did not immediately provide further details about his health.
Leo, elected pope by the world’s cardinals in May 2025, is relatively young for a Church leader. He enjoys sports, including tennis, and is not known to be a smoker or to have had previous health problems.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni wished the pope well, expressing her personal support and that of the Italian government as he faced the operation.
“The serenity and composure with which he spoke about it (today) ... are reassuring,” she said in a statement.
Leo’s predecessor, Pope Francis, died at the age of 88 after several hospitalisations in his later years. Francis did not usually announce hospital visits in advance, sometimes prompting intense media attention over his health.
Leo is due to make an 11-day tour of Uruguay, Argentina and Peru from Nov 6 to 17. Before announcing his health issue on Sunday, he thanked Catholics for their prayers for the upcoming pastoral visit.