VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Leo XIV The Vatican will no longer need any further treatment for lung cancer after tests confirmed the disease was localized, the Vatican announced Wednesday.
Leo, 71, had part of a lung deleted last week in the first major health event of his 17-month pontificate. The operation confirmed he had adenocarcinomathe most common type of lung cancer. Leo was discharged from the Gemelli Polyclinic in Rome on Saturday, four days after the operation, and said he would gradually return to his activities.
The pope’s personal physician, Dr. Luigi Carbone, and his surgeon, Dr. Stefano Margaritora, said the latest tests on tissue removed during the operation confirmed the diagnosis and that the cancer had not spread.
“A subsequent oncological evaluation confirmed that no additional treatment is necessary,” the doctors said in a statement.
The pope had the lower part, or lobe, of his right lung removed to try to ensure all the cancer was removed.
Additional treatment is offered to patients whose cancer has spread, for example to the lymph nodes, or who have certain other signs that their cancer may be particularly aggressive. Surgery can often be enough when tumors are detected very early, such as when a person has an X-ray or other test that shows a spot long before it becomes large or causes symptoms.
The pope appears to have had one of these “incidental findings,” a nodule in his lung discovered during another examination.
In an interview with Vatican News on Saturday, Margaritora, chief thoracic surgeon at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital, confirmed that the nodule was discovered by chance during routine abdominal exams and that the pope had no symptoms.
“These statements suggest that this is a stage I lung cancer for which surgery is very effective and should be curative,” said Dr. Stephen Liu, a lung cancer expert at Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center in Georgetown. He said the lack of further treatment suggests a relatively small cancer and that it has not spread to the lymph nodes.
The Pope carried out his activities during his stay in the hospital, including a call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, and has appeared strong in two public appearances at the Vatican since his operation: the traditional Sunday blessing from a window overlooking St. Peter’s Square and the longer Wednesday audience in the square, greeting worshipers from around the world.
“Thank you! Thank you for your prayer support,” Leo said during the hearing.
His next major commitment is an ambitious trip from November 6 to 17 to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru.
Margaritora told Vatican News there was “no clinical reason” to prevent the trip, which includes a dozen flights, two helicopter flights and high-altitude stopovers.
The pope revealed that a nodule would be surgically removed during the traditional Sunday blessing on October 11, in an unusual way. transparent disclosure broadcast live on television, breaking the tradition of secrecy surrounding papal health matters.
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AP Medical Writer Lauran Neergaard contributed to this report.
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