Stories
Pope Leo to Return to Vatican Following Successful Cancer Surgery
- •Pope Leo XIV is set to leave Rome's Gemelli hospital on Saturday after doctors declared him fit for discharge following lung cancer surgery.
- •The 71-year-old pontiff had part of his right lung removed on Tuesday to extract a cancerous tumour, rattling the Vatican and Catholics worldwide.
- •The Vatican confirmed the pope will return to the Vatican in the early afternoon and is scheduled to recite the Angelus prayer from his papal apartment window.
- •Despite his ongoing recovery, Pope Leo has resumed some work, including a recent phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin urging a ceasefire in Oleshky.
- •Plans for a papal trip to South America in November remain uncertain as doctors await further test results and the pope awaits medical clearance.
Key Questions Answered
Pope Leo XIV, 71, has been hospitalized at Rome's Gemelli hospital since Tuesday after doctors removed part of his right lung to extract a cancerous tumor. Following normal blood tests and a chest X-ray, doctors deemed him fit for discharge, and the Vatican announced he would return to the Vatican in the early afternoon on Saturday.
The Vatican stated that Pope Leo will recite the Angelus prayer on Sunday from the window of the papal apartment. While the prayer is typically given from the Apostolic Palace overlooking St Peter's Square, former popes like John Paul II and Francis similarly delivered it from their hospital windows during past hospitalizations at Gemelli.
A planned papal voyage to South America from November 6-17 to visit Uruguay, Argentina, and Peru remains up in the air. While Pope Leo spent two decades as a missionary in Peru and is anxious to make the journey, he will likely follow the recommendations of his doctors, and all of his audiences have been cancelled until October 20.
