Pope Leo XIV was diagnosed with lung cancer after undergoing scheduled chest surgery, Reuters reported on the 13th local time, citing a Vatican announcement.
According to the report and the Vatican's statement, the pope spent three hours in the operating room at Agostino Gemelli University Hospital in Rome on the afternoon of the same day. The surgery itself lasted about 90 minutes. The Vatican said the pope woke up normally after the procedure.
In a statement released after the operation, the medical team led by Professor Stefano Margaritora said they had removed the lower lobe of the right lung using thoracoscopy for curative surgery, a procedure performed with the aim of a complete cure. The team added that a biopsy conducted during the operation confirmed a diagnosis of lung adenocarcinoma, which had been anticipated based on preoperative tests. The doctors said the surgery was successful and that there were no complications.
Lung adenocarcinoma occurs in lung cells that secrete bodily fluids. It accounts for about 40% of all lung cancers, and adenocarcinoma is known to make up a high share of lung cancer cases among non-smokers.
Medical experts say assessing the pope's condition requires knowing the size of the removed tumor and whether the cancer has spread to the lymph nodes. The Vatican has not yet released specific information on either point.
Dr. Stephen Liu, a hematologist and oncologist at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital in the United States, told Reuters that while a diagnosis has been made, the stage of the cancer remains unknown. He said a small lung cancer without lymph node involvement has a high chance of being cured by surgery alone, but that a final analysis showing wider spread would point to a poorer prognosis.
The Vatican said earlier that all official audiences scheduled with the pope through the 20th had been canceled because of the surgery.
Leo XIV, who is 71, is considered to have become pope at a relatively young age compared with his predecessors. He enjoys sports including tennis and is known to have had no notable medical history.
Gemelli Hospital is a nonprofit Catholic teaching hospital with a special papal suite and chapel on its 10th floor. It has been nicknamed "the third Vatican" because Pope John Paul II spent long periods there.