Pope Leo was diagnosed with cancer, the doctors removed a lung lobe. The Vatican's announcement after the operation

Pope Leo was diagnosed with cancer, doctors removed a lung lobe. The Vatican's announcement after the operation The surgeons removed the lower lobe of the right lung of Pope Leo after discovering a cancerous nodule. - You can become a member of HotNews Premium if you want to support independent journalism and – not to worry about it – if you want to support a European press. - Don't "buy" a month or a year of subscription, but contribute to a public watch service from which we benefit in our communities, regardless of diverse political options. Pope Leo XIV was diagnosed with a common form of lung cancer after doctors removed the lower lobe of the right lung during the surgery, the Vatican announced in a medical bulletin. The Pontiff, aged 71, suffers from adenocarcinoma of the lung, the tissue tests performed during the operation confirming what the doctors suspected even in preliminary examinations, notes the bulletin, according to Reuters and The New York Times. Pope Leo was admitted on Tuesday to the Gemelli hospital in Rome for a surgery to remove a lung formation discovered by doctors following a recent medical check-up. The Vatican announced earlier, Tuesday evening, that the operation was successful, and then to provide more detailed information from the Pope's chief surgeon, Professor Stefano Margaritora, head of the thoracic surgery section at the Gemelli hospital. "For the intervention to be curative, the lower lobe of the right lung was removed using a video-assisted technique," specifies Professor Margaritora's statement. "A rapid intraoperative histological examination confirmed the diagnosis of lung adenocarcinoma, as suspected from preoperative analyses," the statement notes. The Tuesday operation lasted approximately 90 minutes and was successful, without complications, the Vatican announced. The Pope woke up in normal condition and is resting in his hospital room. The statement did not provide further details. How long the Pope will remain in the hospital Leo left the Vatican before the operation, shortly before 1:00 PM local time (11:00 GMT) in Rome, and was seen waving from behind a black SUV as his convoy drove approximately 9 km (5.6 miles) north of the Vatican, towards the Gemelli hospital. Upon arrival at the hospital, Leo shook hands with many officials, passed in front of a crowd of sympathizers waiting for him, some of whom shouted "Congratulations," and entered the main door of the medical unit. The Vatican announced at the beginning of this week that it is foreseen that the Pope will recover in the hospital for about a week. All his public events were cancelled until October 20th. Leo, chosen by the cardinals from around the world in May 2025, is relatively young for a leader of the Catholic Church. He likes sports, including tennis, and it is not known if he is a smoker or has had recent health problems. The late Pope Francis, Leo's predecessor, was hospitalized several times as he became more fragile in terms of health in his final years. He died at the age of 88, in April 2025. Leo, who spoke with a firm and clear voice at his only public event on Monday, has a very full schedule. He is to make an 11-day visit to Uruguay, Argentina, and Peru, from November 6th to 17th. Typhoid fever The Pope is the supreme earthly authority for the 1.4 billion Catholics in the world and has no deputy to take his place when he is ill. When a pope is unable to fulfill his duties, the vast bureaucracy of the Vatican continues as usual, postponing any decision that requires 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 fell ill with typhoid fever in Chulucanas, Peru, and was hospitalized. He told this experience in his only important interview as pope, in a book published by Penguin Peru. Leo said that the pain was so strong that he asked God to die, rather than continue to suffer. He interpreted his survival as a sign from God that "We need you here (on Earth)," he said. "I never looked back," Leo recounted.