Pope Leo admitted to hospital for operation to remove lung growth | Pope Leo XIV

Pope Leo was admitted to a Rome hospital for an operation to remove a small tumor from his lung, a discovery which a senior Vatican cardinal said came “like a bolt from the blue”.

In a rare moment of transparency at the Vatican, Leo, 71, said during his Angelus prayer on Sunday that doctors had found a small nodule on his lung during an examination, adding that it was “well contained” and detected early.

“The doctors believe that it would be wise to intervene and that is why, following their advice, I have decided to have an operation to remove it,” he told the crowd gathered in St. Peter’s Square.

Leo, who in May last year became the first U.S.-born leader of the Roman Catholic Church, is being treated at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital, where a large crowd greeted the pontiff.

The Vatican said the operation would take place later Tuesday afternoon. All of his appointments have been canceled until October 20.

Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state, said he saw Leo Monday evening. “We spoke with great serenity,” Parolin told Rai News. “It’s really a great example. The announcement came like a bolt from the blue, no one expected it. Thank God it was detected immediately, so the operation could take place immediately. Normally, when these things are detected in time, they can be resolved.”

The operation is considered low risk and will determine whether the nodule is malignant.

Leo will stay in the 10-story private wing, but not in the Papal Suite, which is being renovated.

The Chicago-born Pope, who enjoys sports, especially tennis, is generally considered in good health. He often took advantage of the papal retreat at Castel Gandolfo, near Rome.

Leo traveled to France for a papal visit in September and is scheduled to travel to South America in November for a 12-day trip covering 10 cities.

Wednesday’s weekly papal audience will be led by Luis Antonio Tagle, a cardinal from the Philippines who last week was elected dean of the college of cardinals – the authority that presides over papal conclaves.

The Gemelli, located northwest of the Italian capital, is renowned for treating reigning popes. Pope John Paul II stayed there so often that the Vatican worked with the hospital to establish the high-security papal suite.

Leo’s predecessor, Francis, spent more than five weeks in hospital, treated for bronchitis that developed into bilateral pneumonia. He died at his home at Casa Santa Marta in the Vatican on April 21, 2025, just under a month after being released.