Pope Leo XIV recovering from lung cancer surgery: What happens next?

In the hospital chapel, dozens of faithful prayed for the pope’s health during the operation.

Pope Leo XIV had a “calm” night after lung surgery, the Vatican said on Wednesday.

The pope is recovering at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital after undergoing surgery to remove a cancerous tumour from his right lung on Tuesday.

In a statement, the Vatican said the surgery had been “successfully completed, as planned and within the expected timeframe,” adding that the pope had returned to his room on the hospital’s tenth floor, in a ward next to the papal apartment where Pope Francis was hospitalised a year and a half ago.

The 71-year-old pope underwent the 90-minute operation, after which the Vatican said he “woke up normally.”

Part of the pope’s lung was removed during surgery, and he is awaiting test results to determine whether the cancer has spread.

The statement did not mention further treatment, with the Vatican saying doctors were not yet considering chemotherapy or other therapies pending additional test results.

Experts said much would depend on how advanced the cancer was and whether it had spread.

However, the Vatican said it was detected early and was localised, both important factors in determining the prognosis.

Will the pope’s recovery affect his November trip to South America?

The surgery has raised questions about whether the US-born pontiff will be able to proceed with his planned 6–17 November trip to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru.

The Vatican said the pope’s recovery is expected to take around a week, with all his audiences cancelled until 20 October.

It remains unclear whether the pontiff will be able to proceed with his planned trip to South America next month.

Oncologists generally advise patients to avoid flying for three weeks after surgery, leaving the pope just enough time to recover before the trip.

The visit, set to be the longest of his papacy so far, would involve more than 31,000 kilometres of travel across 12 flights and two helicopter journeys.

“He has decided to undergo surgery soon in order to not change his plans for future overseas trips, so there is no need to worry, as it is not an emergency,” said Tokyo Cardinal Kikuchi Tsutomu, who saw the pontiff on Monday.

The surgery marks Pope Leo XIV’s first hospitalisation since becoming pope on 8 May 2025.

The Vatican has traditionally been secretive about papal health, but became more transparent during the papacy of his predecessor, Pope Francis, who openly discussed his health problems.

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