The Vatican announced Wednesday that Pope Leo’s lung cancer treatment was successful.
The 71-year-old pontiff left hospital on Saturday, just four days after undergoing surgery to remove a cancerous mass from his lung.
According to the Vatican press office, the Chicago-born pope will not require any additional treatment.
“The final histological reports and molecular biology analyses of the tissue removed during the Holy Father’s surgery were issued today,” Dr Luigi Carbone and Professor Stefano Margaritora said.
“The results confirmed that the tumor was a lung adenocarcinoma and that the disease was localized.
“A subsequent oncological assessment has confirmed that no further treatment is necessary.”
Pulmonary adenocarcinoma is the most common form of lung cancer, accounting for about 40 percent of cases worldwide.
The head of the Catholic Church underwent the 90-minute procedure last Tuesday morning after doctors discovered a lesion on his chest.
The Vatican said Wednesday that Pope Leo’s lung cancer treatment had been successful.
The head of the Catholic Church underwent a 90-minute procedure last Tuesday after a lesion was found on his chest. He was discharged Saturday afternoon and attended Mass in St Peter’s Square on Sunday morning.
Doctors removed a section of Pope Leo XIV’s right lung during the operation, the Vatican said last week.
After leaving Rome’s Agostino Gemelli University Hospital on Saturday afternoon, he was expected to spend about a week recovering.
Thousands welcomed him on Sunday morning when he appeared in St Peter’s Square to lead a prayer service.
The pontiff appeared at a window of the Apostolic Palace to cheers of “Viva il papa!”—“Hooray for the Pope!”—before concluding a difficult week with his first Angelus prayer since leaving hospital.
Smiling as he addressed the crowd from the Vatican palace window in a firm, clear voice, the first US pope thanked people around the world for their prayers and said he would begin gradually returning to his normal schedule.
“Having overcome this delicate phase… I will now gradually resume my activities, always with the help of God and your prayers,” Leo said. He walked to the service unaided.
He also called on those gathered below beneath cloudy skies to put aside selfish ambitions and serve God “without compromise.”
The pontiff appeared at a window of the Apostolic Palace to cheers of “Viva il papa!”—“Hooray for the Pope!”
Pope Leo said his experience over the past week had made him feel “especially close to those facing illness and infirmity.”
He told the faithful that he had “truly felt your support” and offered “particular gratitude to the doctors, nurses and all the staff at Gemelli hospital” who cared for him.
The Pope paused for a moment and waved to the crowd before retreating into his apartment in the Apostolic Palace.
A delegation from Africa in Rome for a congress danced and ululated after the Pope’s blessing. One Catholic nun knelt and cried, holding her hand over her face.
A few steps away, a group of other nuns held a sign reading: ‘Best wishes, Holy Father. We love you and we are praying for you.’
He became pope on May 8, 2025, making him the first American-born pontiff in the history of the Roman Catholic Church.
The pope was ordained as a priest in the Windy City in 1982, and went on to participate in missionary work in Peru in the 1980s and 1990s.
Before becoming the pope, he was known as Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost.
This is breaking news, updates to follow.