Pope Leo XIV has been diagnosed with lung cancer and has had successful surgery to remove the lower lobe of his right lung, the Vatican has announced.
The pontiff, 71, underwent surgery on Tuesday (13 October) at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital and has been diagnosed with lung adenocarcinoma, the most common form of lung cancer.
In a medical update, the Vatican said Leo was in the operating theatre for approximately three hours and the operation itself lasted about 90 minutes.
“Following the operation, the Pope woke up normally and, after a brief period of observation, returned to his room on the tenth floor.”
The hospital has a suite of rooms reserved for the pope on its tenth floor, which John Paul II dubbed “Vatican three” due to his frequent stays there, and which was also used by Francis.
The Vatican said a lump was first detected during what it described as “routine checks”, and the whole lower lobe of Leo’s right lung was removed using a video-assisted technique “to ensure a radical procedure”.
Examination during surgery “confirmed the diagnosis of lung adenocarcinoma, as suspected by the pre-operative tests”, the Vatican said.
Pope Leo’s surgery was successful, with no complications, it added.
Leading the operation was Professor Stefano Margaritora, the hospital’s chief thoracic surgeon.
While the Vatican did not give more details of the operation, Margaritora is a leading expert in robotic surgical techniques and VATS — Video-Assisted Thoracic Surgery — which is performed through small incisions using endoscopic instruments equipped with a high-definition camera, reducing surgical trauma and allowing faster recovery.
Speaking to Agence France-Presse news agency, a Vatican source said further tests were being carried out to see if there was any sign the cancer had spread. Earlier this week, the Vatican said the Pope was expected to recover in hospital for about a week.
On Tuesday before the operation large crowds had gathered outside the hospital to greet the Catholic church’s leader.
Pope Leo was seen waving from the back of a black SUV as his convoy drove about 5.6 miles north from the Vatican to the Gemelli.
Upon arrival at the hospital, Leo shook hands with several officials, walked in front of the crowd of well-wishers, some of whom shouted ‘auguri’ (Italian for best wishes), and headed in via the main entrance.
During his weekly Sunday noon blessing from St Peter’s Square in the Vatican City, he had told the huge crowd about the discovery of a nodule on his lung: “The doctors consider it appropriate to intervene, and so, following their advice, I have decided to undergo surgery to have it removed.
“I thank you and entrust myself to your prayers.”
All his public events have been canceled until 20 October.
Pope Francis, Pope Leo’s predecessor, was hospitalised several times in the months before his death age 88, in April 2025.
Leo, who spoke in a firm, clear voice at his only public event on Monday, keeps a very busy schedule.
He is due to make an 11-day tour of Uruguay, Argentina and Peru from 6 to 17 November.
The pope is the ultimate earthly authority for the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics and does not have a deputy who steps in when he is sick.
When a pope is incapacitated, the business of the Vatican’s vast bureaucracy carries on as usual, holding off on any decisions that require papal approval.
Leo, born in Chicago in 1955 as Robert Prevost, served for decades as a missionary and bishop in Peru before becoming pope.
In 1985, when he was a young priest, he came down with typhoid fever in Chulucanas, Peru and was hospitalised.
Leo later said the pain was so bad that he asked God to die rather than continue suffering. He took his survival as a sign from God that “We need you here (on Earth),” he said.
“I never looked back.”