Just a day after surgeons removed a cancerous tumour from his lung, Pope Leo XIV is back on his feet — eating, walking and undergoing physiotherapy as doctors reported a “normal” recovery.
The pontiff had part of his right lung removed in an operation yesterday at Rome’s Gemelli hospital. Now, the leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics is awaiting biopsy results that will determine whether the cancer has spread.
In a statement released by the Vatican, doctors Luigi Carbone and Stefano Margaritora said blood tests and a chest X-ray “confirm a normal post-operative course”.
“The values are within the expected range for the type of procedure performed,” they said.
Word yesterday that a nodule discovered in Leo’s lung was malignant has thrown the Catholic Church into an anxious holding pattern.
“It’s a shock for everyone. We’re in ‘wait-and-see’ mode,” a Vatican said.
Medical staff said the pope’s recovery was “proceeding as expected”. They noted he ate both breakfast and lunch, moved around his room, and carried out respiratory physiotherapy designed to support breathing after lung surgery.
Another Vatican source said Leo even celebrated a mass on Wednesday in a specially prepared room on the 10th floor of the hospital, where is staying.
The papal suite on the same floor — typically used when popes receive treatment — includes a private chapel but is currently undergoing refurbishment.
Support floods in from around the world for pope
Leo, a sporty 71-year-old and the first pope from the United States, elected only last year, surprised many when he announced after Sunday prayers that he would undergo surgery.
As news of the operation spread, messages of support arrived from across the world, including from Britain’s King Charles III, who is also being treated for an undisclosed cancer.
Outside Gemelli hospital, a banner declared “Long live the pope!” while a small group gathered to recite prayers for the hospitalised pontiff.
Pope Leo greets well wishers as he arrives at the Gemelli hospital yesterday
Nearby, nun Angele Bilegue said she had come to pray for Leo.
“I’m not worried. I came to express my closeness, to show my spiritual support, because I also came for Pope Francis,” she said.
Leo’s predecessor, the Argentine Francis, spent five weeks last year at the same hospital receiving treatment for double pneumonia, before his death at the Vatican on 21 April 2025.
Specialists said the outlook will largely depend on how advanced Leo’s cancer is and whether it has spread, though the Vatican has said it was detected early and is localised.
Before the operation, the Vatican said recovery was expected to take about a week. All the pope’s audiences have been cancelled until 20 October.
“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, an oncologist at Rome’s Policlinico Umberto I hospital, said.
Leo, who was born in Chicago, entered the hospital yesterday smiling and waving.
In the hospital chapel, dozens of faithful prayed for the pope’s health as the surgery took place.
New uncertainty in church
The diagnosis involving the tennis-playing pope has unsettled the Catholic Church and added fresh uncertainty to a papacy many expected to be lengthy.
Marco Politi, a Vatican watcher who has covered the Holy See for decades, told AFP: “The church is now in a state of uncertainty. When Leo was elected everyone foresaw a long papacy.”
Hendro Munsterman, a theologian and expert for Dutch newspaper Nederlands Dagblad, said the news alters how Leo is perceived. “We have a pope whom everyone described as young, active and athletic. Now, we have a pope who also has his own vulnerabilities, which will change his image.”
His health issues may prompt him to speed up personnel appointments, Mr Munsterman said.
Mr Politi said Leo has been focused on “repairing” rifts among different currents within the Church, and that many will want him “to continue with this important mission as soon as possible”.
Filipino Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, newly nominated to the influential role of dean of the College of Cardinals, celebrated mass in St Peter’s Square today in Leo’s place.
The surgery has also raised questions about whether the pope will proceed with a lengthy visit next month to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru — countries where he worked as a missionary for two decades.
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