Pope Leo Appears in First Photos After Lung Cancer Surgery, Vatican Says Recovery Is Improving

The Vatican has released the first photos of Pope Leo XIV since his lung cancer surgery, showing him celebrating Mass in a makeshift chapel at Rome's Gemelli hospital. His doctors said tests show his recovery is progressing well, and the Vatican said he will make his first public appearance on Sunday.

The 71-year-old Chicago-born pontiff had the lower lobe of his right lung removed on Oct. 13, according to The Independent. The surgery confirmed a diagnosis of adenocarcinoma, the most common type of lung cancer. Many questions about the cancer remain open.

What the photos and the medical update show

The images show Leo standing at an altar in green vestments. Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said the pope presided over the liturgy alone, gave Communion to medical staff and Vatican gendarmes, and delivered a homily. According to the BBC, the altar was set up on the hospital's tenth floor.

In the homily, Bruni said, Leo thanked hospital workers for caring every day for the sick, and in particular for what they had done for him.

A medical update was signed by the pope's personal physician, Dr. Luigi Carbone, and the head of thoracic surgery at Gemelli, Dr. Stefano Margaritora. It said tests confirmed “continued improvement.” The BBC reported that a chest X-ray indicated good recovery of the operated lung. The doctors said his recovery allows him to carry out normal daily activities entirely on his own.

How the diagnosis unfolded

Leo announced the operation himself during his weekly Sunday prayers, the BBC reported. He told the crowd in St. Peter's Square that doctors had found a well-contained nodule on his lung at an early stage and advised removing it. The Vatican has said he showed no symptoms of illness or infection beforehand.

After the operation, the Vatican called the surgery successful and said it proceeded without complications. It said the whole lower lobe was removed so the procedure would be radical. Nodules are common and not always cancerous, but the Vatican said examination confirmed the cancer, as pre-operative tests had suggested.

What is still unknown

Doctors are still waiting for test results on the cancer's precise molecular and genetic makeup. They also need to learn whether it has spread beyond the lobe and whether further treatment is necessary, The Independent reported.

Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican secretary of state, said on Thursday that no predictions can be made, according to the LaPresse and ANSA news agencies. He said the key questions are when and under what circumstances the pope returns, and what doctors say. Based on those factors, he said, Leo would adjust his pontificate if needed. Some observers were surprised by that suggestion.

What this means for Catholics and for the pope's schedule

For the 1.4 billion Catholics worldwide, a public appearance has often served as reassurance about a hospitalized pope's health, according to The Independent. Leo is expected to deliver the traditional noontime Angelus prayer on Sunday, but the Vatican has not said where. Parolin said a recitation from the hospital was possible, depending on his recovery. Vatican media staff were seen laying cables at Gemelli for a possible live broadcast.

The pope's travel plans are also in view. On Friday the Vatican published the names of journalists accredited to fly with him on a Nov. 6-17 trip to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru. His ability to make the trip has been in question since the diagnosis, and the Vatican can change plans at any time. The media list suggests the trip is going ahead on an organizational level.

Notes from young patients

The Vatican also released photos of get-well notes sent to Leo by patients on Gemelli's pediatric oncology ward, on the 10th floor. Popes have often visited that ward during their own hospital stays. A 7-year-old named Angelo wrote that he had been on the floor for 36 days and that he and his mother pray for the pope every night. A university-aged patient, Giorgia, wrote in English that she felt closer to Leo because they were facing a similar illness.

What happens next

The next markers are Sunday's prayer and the pending test results that will show whether the pope needs more treatment. The Nov. 6-17 trip remains on the Vatican's schedule for now.

Sources: The Independent, BBC News