A report by Vatican News says that Pope Leo XIV has undergone surgery at Gemelli Hospital, during which doctors removed the lower lobe of his right lung, according to the Holy See Press Office.
Pope Leo XIV underwent thoracic surgery at Gemelli Hospital on Tuesday afternoon, as planned, according to a statement by Dr. Luigi Carbone and Professor Stefano Margaritora released by the Holy See Press Office.
The surgeons removed the lower lobe of the Pope’s right lung. “To ensure a radical resection, the lower lobe of the right lung was removed using a video-assisted technique,” the statement said.
Tissue examined during the operation confirmed the diagnosis suspected from tests conducted beforehand.
“An intraoperative histological examination confirmed the diagnosis of lung adenocarcinoma, as suspected from the preoperative examinations,” the doctors said.
The Pope was in the operating room for approximately three hours, while the operation itself lasted about 90 minutes. The doctors said the operation was successful and that there were no complications.
Pope Leo awoke normally after surgery and, following a brief period of observation, returned to his room on the hospital’s 10th floor, according to the statement.
Professor Margaritora led the surgical team, assisted by Professor Elisa Meacci, Dr. Maria Teresa Congedo, and Dr. Leonardo Petracca Ciavarella.
The anaesthesia team comprised Professor Massimo Antonelli, Dr. Giovanni Punzo, and Dr. Giuseppe Bello.
In the coming days, post-operative examinations will be conducted on the removed tissue. The preoperative tests had already shown the doctors where and how to operate.
No change has been communicated regarding the previously announced hospitalisation period of one week.
This morning, the Holy See Press Office is expected to provide an update on how the Pope spent the night and any examination results that have become available.
Following the operation, Pope Leo asked for dinner and spent the evening in the company of his secretaries and other Vatican staff, according to the Director of the Holy See Press Office, Matteo Bruni.
Meanwhile, Catholics in Nigeria have been engaged in a chain of prayers since yesterday, interceding for a successful outcome of the surgery.
A notice circulated among ministers of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal in Nigeria, particularly in the Lagos Archdiocese, indicated that an order had been issued directing ministers to pray for the Holy Father as he prepared to undergo surgery.
