Pope Leo will undergo surgery to remove a nodule on his lung

Pope Leo announced Sunday he will undergo surgery in the coming days to remove a nodular lesion on his lung that was recently discovered during medical checks.

The 71-year-old Pope said the nodule was found at an early stage and was “circumscribed” or well-localized. The Vatican later said Leo would undergo surgery in the first days of the week, with an expected recovery time of a week.

The American Pope made the announcement during his Sunday noon blessing. He thanked the crowd for their closeness and entrusted himself to their prayers.

A lung nodule is a small abnormal area measuring less than three centimetres that sometimes appears on a CT scan of the chest or abdomen, according to the American Cancer Society. Often, the scans are done to investigate trauma or a lung infection, unrelated to a lung cancer screening.

Leo, elected Pope by the world’s cardinals in May 2025, is relatively young for a Church leader. He has no previously known health problems and is considered physically active, with weekly tennis games and swimming at the papal summer retreat in Castel Gandolfo.

The Pope has a major trip planned Nov. 6-17 to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru. It’s unclear whether the planned surgery and recovery would affect the itinerary, but Leo said earlier in his remarks Sunday that he planned to go.

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In his remarks, delivered in Italian, Leo said during a recent medical check, “doctors found a small, localized nodule in my lung. It was detected at a very early stage and is circumscribed. The doctors believe it’s best to take action, so, following their advice, I’ve decided to have surgery to remove it.”

“The surgery is already scheduled for the coming days. Thank you for your spiritual support, and I entrust myself to your prayers,” he said.

Before mentioning his health issue in his address on Sunday, the Pope referred to the trip, thanking Catholics for their prayers “for the pastoral visit I will undertake.”

Leo’s predecessor, Pope Francis, died April 21, 2025, of a stroke following a long hospitalization brought on by a respiratory crisis that developed into double pneumonia. Francis suffered from chronic lung disease and had part of one lung removed as a young man.

Leo is expected to undergo surgery at Rome’s Gemelli hospital, where Francis and popes before him were treated and where there is a special apartment for pontiffs.

Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni, among the few outsiders to visit Francis during his long final hospitalization, expressed her support, and that of the Italian government, to Leo “as he faces this challenge in the coming days.” In a statement, she added that “the serenity and calm with which he spoke about it” were reassuring.

A nodule on the lung is a small, localized lesion that can be benign. The American Thoracic Society says fewer than five per cent of lung nodules overall prove cancerous, although risk rises with age, size and other factors.