Pope Leo diagnosed with lung cancer after doctors successfully remove nodule ⁰

Pope Leo had a lower lobe of his right lung removed during surgery on Tuesday and ‌was diagnosed with lung ⁠adenocarcinoma, a common form of ‌lung cancer, the Vatican said in ⁠a medical bulletin. The surgery was successful and the pope is expected to spend a week in hospital recovering. The 71-year-old pontiff is due to travel to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru on November 6, though the Vatican has not confirmed the operation date.

“The procedure was successfully completed, within the expected time and in the planned manner, and the Holy Father has returned to his room,” the Vatican press office said on Telegram.

The 71-year-old pontiff has lung adenocarcinoma, with tissue tests conducted during the operation confirming what doctors had suspected from preparatory examinations, the ​bulletin said.

Pope Leo arrived at hospital in Rome on Tuesday ahead of surgery to remove ​a small cancerous growth on one of his lungs, in the first major health issue of his 17-month tenure.

Leo, 71, said on Sunday that a small nodule had been ​found on a ‌check-up, was “well-contained” and had been spotted early.

He was ⁠expected to leave the Vatican for Rome’s Gemelli hospital late morning, the Vatican press office said, without specifying when ‌the actual operation would take place.

Leo, elected 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 health issues previously.

The Vatican has said ‌his recovery is expected to take about a week. All his public events have been cancelled until October 20.

A nodule on the lung is a small, localised lesion ‌that can be benign. The American Thoracic Society says fewer than 5% of lung nodules overall prove cancerous, although ​risk rises with age, size, and other factors such as smoking.

Dr. Federico Venuto, chief of thoracic surgery at Rome’s Policlinico Umberto I hospital, said procedures to ​remove lung nodules are usually minimally invasive, and can sometimes involve use of a ​thin camera tube called a thoracoscope.

“The complication rate ​is extremely low,” he told Reuters.

The late Pope Francis, Leo’s predecessor, died at age 88 in April 2025 and ​was hospitalised several times as he grew frail in his later years.

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 November 6 to 17.

In the same address on Sunday when the ⁠pope announced his need ​for surgery, Leo pledged he would go forward with the trip.

Source: Reuters