On Tuesday, the Vatican disclosed that Pope Leo had received a cancer diagnosis, and additional details about his condition have since been made available. A lung nodule prompted a hospital visit for Pope Leo on Tuesday, when the Vatican confirmed he had been taken to a facility in Rome for the procedure — making him the first pontiff born in the United States.
Specialists note that lung nodules appear frequently in the population, with roughly 95 per cent proving non-cancerous upon further evaluation. Following a 90-minute procedure at Gemelli University Hospital, a Vatican statement confirmed that the pope had received a cancer diagnosis and that the lower lobe of his right lung had been removed.
Lung adenocarcinoma — one of the more frequently occurring forms of lung cancer — was identified through testing, the Vatican's statement noted. Preoperative testing had pointed toward that conclusion, and the procedure itself brought definitive confirmation.
A statement from the Vatican on Wednesday indicated that Leo had passed a calm night at the hospital. A further update on his condition was expected to be made available before the end of the day.
A statement released by Vatican officials on Tuesday night indicated that the procedure had gone smoothly, with no complications arising. Following the procedure, Leo lay awake in his hospital bed, recovering. Scheduled appointments on Leo's calendar have been cleared for the coming week as he continues his recovery.
According to reports, the pope maintains a physically active routine that includes weekly tennis sessions and regular swimming. Records indicate this was his second admission to hospital — the earlier one dating to 1985, when typhoid fever struck him during his time as a missionary priest in Chulucanas, Peru.
Chosen at a conclave held in spring 2025, the new pontiff — whose birth name is Robert Francis Prevost — took the papal title Leo following the passing of Pope Francis, who had reached the age of 88. In the period that followed, he voiced consistent calls for a halt to armed conflict across the Middle East and for humane conditions for those displaced from their homes.
Just days prior, he had put forward the view that capital punishment was "inadmissible" — a stance he made public after the United States announced plans to televise a firing squad execution.
A Mass at St Peter's Square on Wednesday will be presided over by Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, standing in for the pope. Petitions for the pontiff's recovery are woven into the liturgy planned for that Mass.
