Pope Leo XIV needs no further lung cancer treatment, doctors say

Pope Leo XIV will not need more treatment for lung cancer, his medical team said Wednesday in a Vatican statement, after follow-up testing found the disease had stayed confined to where it began.

Dr. Luigi Carbone, who serves as the pontiff's physician, and Dr. Stefano Margaritora, who operated on him, said lab results on tissue taken during surgery confirmed adenocarcinoma, the most frequent type of lung cancer, and showed it was localized. CBS Philadelphia, 6abc and NBC10 reported that the doctors said a later review by cancer specialists ruled out the need for any additional therapy.

Surgeons took out the lower portion of the 71-year-old's right lung on Oct. 13, 6abc reported. According to the station, the camera-guided operation was minimally invasive, lasted roughly 90 minutes within about three hours in the operating room, and produced no complications. The Philadelphia Inquirer and NBC10 described it as the first significant health issue of Leo's 17 months as pope.

Though the Vatican had at first anticipated about a week in the hospital, Leo was released from Rome's Gemelli hospital on Saturday, four days after surgery, the Inquirer reported. CBS Philadelphia said a large, cheering crowd greeted him as he left.

In an interview with Vatican News, Margaritora said doctors spotted the nodule by chance during routine exams of the abdomen. NBC10 reported the pope had not had symptoms. CBS Philadelphia quoted the surgeon calling the find "entirely accidental" and said he noted it might have gone unseen had it sat a bit higher.

An outside expert, Dr. Stephen Liu of Georgetown's Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, told NBC10 the doctors' account points to stage I cancer, "for which surgery is highly effective and expected to be curative."

While hospitalized, Leo kept working and spoke by phone with Vladimir Putin, according to the Inquirer and NBC10. Since returning to the Vatican, he has offered the Sunday prayer from a window over St. Peter's Square and led his weekly Wednesday audience. CBS Philadelphia reported he told the Sunday crowd the experience made him feel close to people facing illness and that he would ease back into his work.

Leo announced the nodule and upcoming operation at his Oct. 11 Sunday blessing. NBC10 said the live televised disclosure broke with the long secrecy surrounding the health of popes.

The pope, a Chicago native and the first American to hold the office, plans to visit Uruguay, Argentina and Peru Nov. 6-17. Margaritora told Vatican News he saw "no clinical reason" to cancel. The Inquirer and NBC10 reported the itinerary includes roughly 12 flights, a pair of helicopter trips and stops at high elevation.

Compiled by True News from reporting by The Philadelphia Inquirer, CBS Philadelphia, 6abc Action News and NBC10 Philadelphia. Each outlet's original story is linked below.

Originally published by True News: https://truenews.bagleyenterprises.net/stories/327