Pope Leo XIV is recovering as expected following surgery to remove the lower lobe of his right lung after a lung cancer diagnosis, doctors said Wednesday.
The 71-year-old pontiff has begun walking and resumed a normal diet since the roughly 90-minute procedure at Rome's Gemelli Hospital on Tuesday afternoon, according to a Vatican statement. Blood tests and X-ray results from Wednesday morning showed recovery progressing normally. He has also undergone respiratory physiotherapy.
The entire lower lobe was removed to ensure the procedure was radical, the Vatican said. The Pope awoke normally after surgery and spent a peaceful night at the hospital, where he is expected to remain for about a week.
The pontiff announced the operation during Sunday prayers, telling crowds in St Peter's Square that doctors had found a "well-contained" nodule on his lung at an early stage. After examination, medical staff confirmed the growth was lung adenocarcinoma, a cancer type that develops in mucus-producing cells and ranks among the most common lung cancers. A Vatican source told AFP that further tests were carried out to assess whether the cancer had spread.
The Vatican stressed the Pope has no symptoms of infection or illness and is generally considered fit. Adenocarcinoma prognosis depends on cancer stage at detection and overall health. Early detection typically brings better outcomes, and treatments have improved over recent decades.
The diagnosis has prompted reflection among Catholics. Pope Leo's predecessor, Pope Francis, died last year after a lifetime marked by respiratory infections following partial lung removal in his youth. The news of Pope Leo's cancer has unsettled Catholics with recent memories of Francis's hospital admissions.