Top Vatican official says Pope’s cancer diagnosis ‘game changer’ for papacy, even if he recovers

ROME (AP) — Even if Pope Leo XIV recovering well from lung cancer surgery and embarking on a major trip to Latin America next week, the diagnosis “is a bit of a game changer” for the Vatican and Leo’s still-young papacy, a senior Vatican official said Tuesday.

Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, the Holy See’s foreign minister, said there had been a temptation to think Leo was a “superman, a superpope” after being elected in 2025 and “taking over” after the long illness and death of Pope Francis.

“The fact that he has, in many ways, one of the most common illnesses of our time means that he is a poor mortal like the rest of us. And I think that will change the way we see him and perhaps also the way he sees himself,” Gallagher told reporters at the Italian Foreign Press Association.

“Even though the surgery went well and everyone (says) there’s reason to be very optimistic, I think it’s a bit of a game changer at the same time,” Gallagher said.

Leo, 71, had the lower lobe of his right lung removed on October 13 after doctors discovered a tumor, later diagnosed as a tumor. adenocarcinomathe most common form of lung cancer. Further testing indicated no additional treatment is necessary, and Leo slowly returns to his daily activities.

The Vatican confirmed this week that Leo would continue his project Travel from November 6 to 17 in Uruguay, Argentina and Peru, without any modification to the program. The published travel itinerary is a challenge even for a healthy pope, with a dozen flights and two helicopter flights covering 31,000 kilometers (19,000 miles), the longest of Leo’s pontificate.

We asked him why Leo didn’t do it postpone the trip so he could recover further, Gallagher said the pope just wanted to go. Leo spent two decades as a missionary priest in Peru, where he has citizenship, and has clearly demonstrated his close attachment to his people and his former diocese of Chiclayo.

“All the medical advice is very positive, from a clinical point of view, so he feels he can go,” he said.

A trip to the United States in perspective

Gallagher, a British veteran of the Vatican diplomatic service, also predicted that Chicago-born Leo would visit his native United States in “the not too distant future.” But he added that the outcome of next month’s midterm elections could influence whether the trip takes place in 2027 or later.

The Vatican generally tries to avoid papal trips to countries plagued by domestic election campaigns to avoid allowing the powers that be to use the pope for political purposes. The US presidential elections are scheduled for November 2028.

Preliminary discussions about a possible trip to the United States included having it coincide with the United Nations General Assembly meeting in the fall, or alongside a possible stop in Mexico, although Gallagher stressed that no firm plans were in place.

“He is, I think, very keen to visit the shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe at some point,” Gallagher said, referring to the immensely popular basilica in Mexico City, which is a major pilgrimage destination where past popes have visited.

Gallagher also said it was “very likely” that Leo would travel to Australia in 2028 to close a major church meeting in Sydney, the International Eucharistic Congress. More big trips are expected to South Korea in August 2027 for World Youth Day.

A thoughtful pope who keeps his cards close

Gallagher, who also served as foreign minister under Pope Francis, shared some thoughts on working with Leo after Francis’ sometimes turbulent pontificate, characterized by the Argentine pope’s spontaneity, grand gestures and occasional diplomatic gaffes.

Leo, he said, is thoughtful, reflects and is “not impetuous.” The math-savvy Pope knows how to read a spreadsheet and is extremely knowledgeable, asking follow-up questions, so that when Gallagher meets with him every Wednesday evening to brief him on pressing foreign policy issues, “almost everything I say he already knows.”

At the same time, Leo remains discreet and keeps his cards close to him. Gallagher revealed he was unaware of Leo’s planned surgery until the pope announced it to the world on Oct. 11 during his weekly Sunday blessing. He said he still didn’t really know what the pope was thinking about the future.

“I think he’ll stick to his plan. And he’ll stick to revealing his plan, because he’s not the kind of personality that shares a lot with what he plans to do in three or four years,” he said.

Gallagher said what struck him most about working with Leo was his calmness, his focus on preaching the gospel and solving problems as they arose. And he dismissed speculation that the Vatican’s Italian-centric bureaucracy would ultimately prevail and thwart his agenda.

“I don’t think the Curia will devour him. I think if there is any sign of that, he will demonstrate that he has an appetite too,” Gallagher said with a laugh.

___

Associated Press religion coverage receives AP support collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.