VATICAN CITY – Catholic faithful gathered in St. Peter’s Square on Sunday to welcome Pope Leo XIV back to the Vatican following surgery to remove a tumor from his lung.
The pope delivered the traditional Angelus blessing, marking his first official engagement since leaving the hospital Saturday, four days after undergoing cancer surgery.
The 71-year-old pontiff had the lower lobe of his right lung removed Tuesday in the first major health crisis of his 17-month pontificate. Doctors confirmed that the tumor was adenocarcinoma, the most common form of lung cancer.
Speaking in English to a reporter as he left Rome’s Gemelli hospital, Leo said he was doing “much better.” He returned to the Vatican well before the weeklong hospital stay initially expected.
“I don’t believe it, because he was just operated on the other day,” said Cosimo Mastrocinque, a retired factory worker visiting from the southern Italian region of Puglia. “It is a miracle that he recovered already.”
American visitors were particularly eager to pray alongside the first pope born in the United States. Marla Marsala of Michigan had been scheduled to attend Mass with Leo the previous week, but the service was canceled after he was hospitalized.
“I am just happy that we are praying with him today instead of for him, like we were before,” Marsala said. “It was a tough week for all of the people who love him, which are many. He seems like a very strong soul. So I think he will pull through and fight it, and succeed and keep doing the wonderful work he is doing.”
Claire Holland of Jacksonville, Florida, said she felt “very blessed” to be in St. Peter’s Square for the pope’s return to his flock.
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“I’m so happy that he has recovered so quickly. I think there have been millions and millions of prayers,” Holland said. “And he is a strong, determined man, and I am so happy that he is feeling well enough to do this.”
Leo’s next major engagement is an ambitious Nov. 6-17 journey to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru. The itinerary includes a dozen flights and two helicopter rides to high altitudes. His surgeon, Dr. Stefano Margaritora, told Vatican News on Saturday that there were “no clinical reasons” to rule out the trip.
“The Holy Father has put his heart and soul into his recovery,” Margaritora told Vatican News. He said the pope was expected to make a full recovery from the operation “in another 10 days or so.”
Regarding the long journey and air travel planned in roughly three weeks, Margaritora said, “there are no clinical reasons why it should not take place.”
Pathologists were still examining the tumor and nearby lymph nodes. Those results, including information about the tumor’s molecular and genetic characteristics, will help determine whether Leo needs further treatment. Possible options include chemotherapy, a combination of chemotherapy and immunotherapy, or targeted oral medication guided by the tumor’s genetic profile.
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