Pope Leo XIV, Sovereign of the Vatican City State, underwent surgery at Gemelli Hospital in Rome, Italy, during which doctors removed the lower lobe of his lung on the right side, as disclosed by the Press Office of the Holy See.
As planned, a thoracic surgery was carried out on the Pope on Tuesday 13 October, 2026, a statement from Dr. Luigi Carbone and Professor Stefano Margaritora released by the Holy See Press Office reveals.
According to the statement, the lower lobe of the right lung of the Pope was removed. It says: “To ensure a radical resection, the lower lobe of the right lung was removed using a video-assisted technique”.
During the operation, tissue examined confirmed the diagnosis suspected from tests conducted beforehand.
According to the doctors, “an intraoperative histological examination confirmed the diagnosis of lung adenocarcinoma, as suspected from the preoperative examinations.”
The Head of the Catholic Church was in the operation room for three (3) hours approximately, while, the operation itself lasted about ninety (90) minutes.
According to the statement, the Pope awoke after surgery normally, and, after a short period of observation, made his way back to his room in the 10th floor of the hospital.
The surgical team was led by Professor Margaritora, with Professor Elisa Meacci, Dr. Maria Teresa Congedo, and Dr. Leonardo Petracca Ciavarella as assistants.
Professor Massimo Antonelli, Dr. Giovanni Punzo, and Dr. Giuseppe Bello made up the anaesthesia team.
Post-operation exams will be carried out on the removed tissue in the coming days.
No change has been announced as concerns the previously announced hospitalisation time of one week.
