Pope Leo XIV surgery: lung nodule removal at Gemelli

Pope Leo XIV will be admitted to Rome's Policlínico Agostino Gemelli in the late morning of Tuesday, October 13, for surgery to remove a nodule on one of his lungs. The pope announced the operation himself at the end of the Angelus prayer on Sunday, October 11, and the Vatican press office later confirmed the hospital admission. All papal audiences are suspended until at least October 20, and the Vatican expects a recovery period of about a week.

The 71-year-old American pontiff said the nodule was found during medical checks, had been detected at a very early stage and is "circumscribed," meaning well-localized. Doctors considered it appropriate to operate, and he decided to follow their advice, he told the faithful gathered in St. Peter's Square (AP News).

What is confirmed, and what is still open

Tuesday's admission is the only logistical detail the Holy See has fixed so far. The exact date and time of the Pope Leo XIV surgery have not been confirmed: the pope said it would take place during the current week, and the Vatican placed it among the first days of the week. Holy See sources cited by Infobae put the expected postoperative period at about seven days (Infobae). The Gemelli, France 24 notes, is linked to the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, counts among Italy's main university hospitals and has treated several pontiffs, including Pope Francis (France 24).

Several clinical questions about the Pope Leo XIV surgery remain open in the reporting so far. The sources reviewed for this article do not address whether the nodule is benign or malignant, what type of procedure will be used or what kind of anesthesia the pope will receive, and none of them cites a medical bulletin with clinical details.

For non-specialists, the American Cancer Society defines a lung nodule as a small abnormal area measuring less than 3 centimeters (1 inch) that sometimes appears on a CT scan of the chest or abdomen — scans often ordered to investigate trauma or a lung infection rather than as cancer screening (AP News).

The framing also varies between sources. A DNews segment describes the operation as "emergency surgery," while the pope and the Vatican present it as an intervention already scheduled for the coming days. The available material does not resolve that discrepancy.

The Gemelli, a hospital with a papal history

The Policlínico Agostino Gemelli, linked to the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, is one of Italy's main university hospitals, and its patient list includes Pope Francis. Leo XIV is 71 years old and is an American pope, according to AP News. He has kept a dense schedule in recent weeks: at the same Angelus on October 11 he appealed for peace in Ukraine, encouraged the faithful to proclaim Christian joy everywhere and thanked them for their spiritual closeness (Vatican News). He held his weekly general audience in St. Peter's Square on October 7 (AP News) and met members and volunteers of the Circolo San Pietro at the Vatican on October 12, according to Infobae.

Why the November trip to Latin America still hangs on his recovery

A papal tour of Latin America is planned for November 2026, with a visit to Uruguay set for November 6-8 plus stops in Argentina and Peru, according to a DNews report that counted 25 days until the pope's arrival in the region (DNews). France 24 reported that only after his recovery is known can it be determined whether Leo XIV will be able to make the trip without compromising his health. Cardinal Daniel Sturla said there have so far been no changes to the pope's scheduled agenda in Uruguay, a detail that rests on a single source.

What comes next is a sequence of open questions rather than a timetable: whether audiences resume after October 20 or the suspension is extended, whether the Holy See publishes pathology results, and whether further medical bulletins follow. Until then, the November tour remains officially unconfirmed.

Reactions: support messages and calls for prayer

Italian President Sergio Mattarella sent a message to Leo XIV conveying a cordial remembrance on behalf of the whole country, and Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said she was reassured by the serenity and calmness with which the pope announced the intervention, according to Vatican News (Vatican News). The Communion and Liberation movement invited the faithful to pray the rosary in community and in family for the pope's health.

The pope himself thanked the faithful for their spiritual closeness and entrusted himself to their prayers (Vatican News). A DNews broadcast also mentioned messages of support from Javier Milei and Keiko Fujimori, a detail that does not appear in the other sources reviewed.