Pope Leo XIV said he will undergo surgery in the coming days to remove a small nodule on his lung that was discovered during a recent health check. The announcement came during his weekly Sunday blessing in St. Peter's Square.
The 71-year-old leader of the Roman Catholic Church told pilgrims that the nodule was "caught at a very early stage and is still localized." He said doctors advised treating it promptly and that he decided to have surgery on their recommendation.
The Vatican later said the pope is expected to need about a week to recover from the procedure. A spokesperson, however, did not say whether the nodule is believed to be malignant.
Lung nodules are small, localized growths that can be benign. The American Thoracic Society says fewer than 5 percent of lung nodules ultimately turn out to be cancer, though the risk rises with age, size and other factors such as smoking.
"Lung nodules are quite common and usually benign," said Stephen Liu, a lung cancer specialist at Georgetown University in the United States and chief of hematology-oncology at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital in Washington, DC.
Pope Leo XIV had no previously known health problems and has been described as active, playing tennis and swimming weekly at the papal summer residence in Castel Gandolfo.
Latin America trip
The pope is scheduled to make a major trip from Nov. 6 to 17 to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru. It is not yet clear whether the surgery and recovery period will affect that schedule, but in his Sunday remarks he said he still intends to make the trip.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni sent her best wishes to the pope after learning the news. In a statement, she expressed her personal support and that of the Italian government for the Holy Father in the coming days. She added that the calm and composure the pope showed when discussing the matter was reassuring.
Pope Francis, Leo XIV's predecessor, died at the age of 88. He was hospitalized repeatedly and grew frail in his final years. He often did not announce his hospitalizations in advance, at times fueling intense media speculation about his health.
