Pope Begins Recovery After Lung Surgery

Pope Leo XIV has begun walking and eating after surgery to remove a cancerous tumour from his lung, with doctors reporting that his recovery is progressing normally.

The 71-year-old pontiff had the operation on Tuesday at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital, where surgeons removed part of his right lung. He is awaiting biopsy results to determine whether the cancer has spread.

In a statement released by the Vatican on Wednesday, his doctors, Luigi Carbone and Stefano Margaritora, said blood tests and a chest X-ray showed no abnormalities beyond what would be expected after the procedure.

They added that Leo’s recovery was proceeding as planned. The pope had eaten breakfast and lunch, walked around his hospital room and undergone respiratory physiotherapy.

A Vatican source also said he had celebrated Mass on Wednesday in a specially prepared room on the hospital’s 10th floor, where he is being treated.

The discovery that a lung nodule was cancerous has raised concerns within the Catholic Church. One Vatican source described the news as a shock, saying the institution was waiting for further information about the pontiff’s condition.

The Vatican has said the cancer was detected early and remained localised, although the biopsy results are expected to provide more information about its extent.

Leo, who became the first American pope following his election last year, announced his planned surgery after Sunday prayers. Messages of support flooded in from around the world, including from Britain’s King Charles III, who is also being treated for an undisclosed cancer.

A banner flying outside the hospital read “Long live the pope!” and a handful of people recited prayers for the hospitalised pontiff.

Nearby, nun Angele Bilegue said she had come to pray for Leo. Bilegue said she visited to offer spiritual support, recalling that she had also prayed for Leo’s predecessor, Pope Francis, during his hospitalisation.

“I’m not worried. I came to express my closeness, to show my spiritual support, because I also came for Pope Francis,” she told AFP.

Francis, who was Argentine, spent five weeks at Gemelli Hospital last year receiving treatment for double pneumonia. He died at the Vatican on April 21, 2025.

Medical experts say Leo’s prognosis will depend largely on the stage of the cancer and whether it has spread. Before the operation, the Vatican indicated that his recovery could take about a week. All his audiences have been cancelled until October 20.

Alain Gelibter, an oncologist at Rome’s Policlinico Umberto I hospital, told AFP that patients with stage I or II cancer who recover well can often return to their usual activities within a few weeks.

“If we are dealing with stage I or II disease, and recovery is good… the patient can resume a normal life and usual activities within a few weeks,” Alain Gelibter told AFP.

Leo was seen smiling and waving as he entered the hospital on Tuesday. During the operation, dozens of worshippers gathered in the hospital chapel to pray for his health.

The diagnosis has introduced fresh uncertainty into Leo’s papacy, which many observers had expected to be lengthy given his age and active lifestyle.

Vatican expert Marco Politi said the news had left the Church uncertain about the future, noting that Leo’s election had initially prompted expectations of a long period in office.

“The Church is now in a state of uncertainty. When Leo was elected everyone foresaw a long papacy.”

Dutch theologian Hendro Munsterman also observed that the diagnosis had altered public perceptions of the pope, who had been widely described as youthful, energetic and athletic. He said the illness highlighted his personal vulnerabilities and could affect how he is viewed.

Munsterman suggested that the health concerns might encourage Leo to accelerate decisions on senior Church appointments.

Politi said the pope had been working to mend divisions between different factions within the Church, adding that many would want him to resume that work as soon as possible.

On Wednesday, Filipino Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, recently nominated to the influential position of dean of the College of Cardinals, celebrated Mass in St Peter’s Square in Leo’s place.

The surgery has also raised questions about whether the pope will proceed with a lengthy trip planned for next month to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru, where he spent two decades as a missionary.