Pope Leo XIV thanked the faithful for their prayers and support after returning to the Vatican following surgery, telling thousands gathered in St Peter’s Square on Sunday that he had passed through a difficult stage and would gradually resume his duties with God’s help.
‘I have come through this delicate period, and now I will gradually carry out my work with God’s help and your prayers,’ the pope said after the Angelus prayer.
He added that during his hospital stay, he had felt the support of believers, an experience that had brought him closer to people suffering from illness or living with poor health.
Leo appeared at noon in the window of the Apostolic Palace overlooking St Peter’s Square, where crowds greeted him with applause and cheers. After explaining the Sunday Gospel reading and reciting the Angelus in Latin, he thanked those who had prayed for him during his hospitalization.
The pope had announced a week earlier, during his Sunday address in the same square, that doctors had discovered a lump in his lung and that he needed surgery. He underwent the operation on Tuesday and returned to the Vatican on Saturday.
Stefano Margaritora, the surgeon who led the procedure at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital, told Vatican News that there were no clinical reasons preventing the pope from undertaking his planned apostolic visit to South America in November. Leo is expected to visit Argentina, Uruguay and Peru from 6–17 November.
Margaritora said the pope was expected to recover fully within ten days. The malignant tumour had been discovered incidentally during a routine chest examination, he added, stressing the importance of preventive medical checks.
The surgeon described the operation as complex but said it had been completed without complications. He also praised the pope as an ideal patient, describing him as calm and cheerful, with few complaints despite experiencing pain. According to Margaritora, Leo had even done slightly more than the medical team had asked of him.
The surgeon described operating on the pontiff as an ‘indescribable spiritual experience’, noting the responsibility involved in treating the leader of Catholics worldwide and the intense media attention surrounding the procedure.
The Vatican is expected to announce in the coming days what post-operative care the pope will receive.
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