The key facts

  • Leo XIV was discharged from Gemelli Hospital on October 17 after a 90-minute operation on October 13 to remove the lower lobe of his right lung; adenocarcinoma was confirmed
  • Doctors Luigi Carbone and Stefano Margatora: blood tests and an X-ray confirmed readiness for discharge; results of the check for cancer spread have not yet been announced
  • On Sunday the pope will lead the Angelus from the window of the papal apartments; all audiences until October 20 are cancelled, the trip to Latin America on November 6–17 is in question

Discharge after lung surgery

Pope Leo XIV was discharged from Rome's Gemelli Hospital on Saturday, October 17, and returned to the Vatican after five days of hospitalization (according to BBC and DW — four days after the surgery itself). The 71-year-old pontiff walked to the car on his own, stopped to greet the gathered crowd and, according to witnesses, said: 'I already feel better, thank you.' The trip from the hospital to the Vatican took about ten minutes.

Course of the operation and diagnosis

On October 11 the pope announced that doctors had found a nodule in his lung and recommended surgical removal. The operation took place on October 13 and, according to the Vatican, lasted about 90 minutes (total time in the operating room — about three hours), was successful and without complications. Surgeons removed the lower lobe of the right lung, and tissue analysis confirmed pulmonary adenocarcinoma — the most common type of lung cancer, suspected already during pre-operative examinations. At the same time, as DW notes, doctors did not disclose the size of the tumor or whether lymph nodes were affected; the results of additional tests for cancer spread, according to BBC, have not yet been announced.

Health condition and recovery

The decision to discharge was made by doctors Luigi Carbone and Stefano Margatora after morning blood tests and a chest X-ray confirmed that the clinical condition allowed leaving the hospital. On Thursday the X-ray showed 'good recovery' of the affected lung, and the doctors' note spoke of 'stable improvement.' Before discharge the pope celebrated Mass in a specially designated room on the 10th floor of the hospital, where he had also celebrated Mass on previous days; on Friday photographs were published showing him distributing communion to staff. According to DW, the pope is undergoing physiotherapy to ease breathing.

Immediate plans and cancelled events

On Sunday Leo XIV will lead the traditional Angelus prayer at noon from the window of the papal apartments in the Apostolic Palace — this will be his first public appearance since the operation. Last time, announcing the upcoming operation, he surprised many by announcing it himself after the Angelus. All of the pontiff's audiences and events until October 20 are cancelled for recovery. The planned visit to South America on November 6–17 — Uruguay, Argentina and Peru, where the pope worked as a missionary for about two decades — remains in question. According to sources close to the pope, he does not want to postpone the trip but will likely follow doctors' recommendations; it is still unclear whether he will be able to travel or whether additional treatment will be required.

Call to Putin and reaction

On Friday the pope held a telephone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin — their first conversation since June 2025. The Vatican said the purpose of the call was an appeal for 'dialogue and peace.' BBC notes that the call took place amid intensified shelling by Russian forces of Ukrainian cities and a growing number of civilian casualties. The pope also called for a humanitarian ceasefire in the Ukrainian city of Oleshky, occupied by Russia, to allow the evacuation of people and the delivery of food and medicine; BBC previously reported that residents of the city are forced to eat garden weeds to survive. According to AFP, the pope called Putin with an appeal for a ceasefire specifically in Oleshky. The news of the diagnosis caused concern in the Vatican among the world's 1.4 billion Catholics; outside the hospital, 12-year-old Ukrainian Varvara Struk, who herself previously overcame cancer and had met the pope, told AFP that she wants to 'give him her positive energy' so that he can overcome the illness soon.