Vatican issues update on Pope Leo's condition after cancer surgery
Vatican issues update on Pope Leo's condition after cancer surgery
Anna Loren Wed, October 14, 2026 at 10:39 AM UTC
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The Vatican has issued an update on Pope Leo’s condition, following a shock announcement on Tuesday that the 71-year-old pontiff has cancer.
Leo, who is the first American-born pope in history, was admitted to hospital in Rome on Tuesday for what the Vatican earlier described as the removal of a lung nodule.
Lung nodules are very common, and around 95 per cent turn out to be benign, according to experts.
However, following the 90-minute surgery at Gemelli University Hospital, the Vatican said that the pope had been diagnosed with cancer and had the lower lobe of his right lung removed.
Tests had confirmed a diagnosis of lung adenocarcinoma, a common form of lung cancer, the Vatican said.
Pope Leo XIV waves from the window of a car as he leaves the Vatican before being admitted to Rome's Gemelli University Hospital for surgery (AFP/Getty)
The diagnosis had been suspected during preoperative tests and was confirmed during surgery.
On Wednesday, the Vatican said that Leo had spent a “tranquil night” in hospital.
The Vatican said that doctors were waiting for the results of further tests before deciding on a course of treatment for the pontiff.
It had been indicated that doctors took out all suspect tissue in hopes of removing any lingering traces of cancer, the press office said.
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Experts said that some of Leo’s lymph nodes would also have been removed and tested to determine if the cancer had spread. There was no word yet on those test results.
If the cancer has spread, more tests will be needed to determine what kind of therapy to pursue, said Dr Stephen Liu, a lung cancer expert at Georgetown’s Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Centre.
Options include chemotherapy, a combination of chemotherapy and immunotherapy or targeted therapy, which involves oral pills for specific cancers.
The pope is recovering at the Gemelli University Hospital in Rome (Reuters)
“Adenocarcinoma is the most common (type of lung cancer), also with the most favorable prognosis,” said Dr Liu, who is not involved in the pope’s care.
“While we know the diagnosis, we now the stage.”
He added: “We now how big it is, how many spots in the lung are involved. Is it just one nodule, or more than one, and the lymph nodes, are they cancerous?”
The Vatican on Tuesday evening had said that the surgery was successful and there were no complications. Afterwards, Leo was awake and resting in his hospital room.
The Vatican has cancelled all of Leo’s audiences for a week while he recovers.
The pope is known to be sporty and in good shape, playing tennis weekly and swimming. The lung surgery is believed to be his second spell in hospital, following a stint in 1985, after he came down with typhoid fever as a young missionary priest in Chulucanas, Peru.
Leo, born Robert Francis Prevost, was elected pope in spring 2025 following the death of Pope Francis at the age of 88.
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Source: “AOL Breaking”
