Pope Leo XIV to be Discharged Saturday After Lung Surgery
The pontiff will return to the Vatican and is expected to lead prayers from his papal apartment window on Sunday.
Pope Leo XIV is scheduled to be discharged from Rome’s Gemelli Polyclinic on Saturday, according to a statement from his medical team. Doctors have deemed him fit to leave the hospital following surgery on his right lung.
The pontiff is expected to return to the Vatican in the early afternoon. He will lead the recitation of the Angelus prayer from the window of the papal apartment on Sunday.
His medical team, including Dr. Luigi Carbone and Prof. Stefano Margaritora, confirmed his condition based on blood tests and a chest X-ray performed Saturday morning. The pope had resumed work activities on Thursday, just days after the operation.
Leo was diagnosed with lung adenocarcinoma, the most common subtype of non-small cell lung cancer. This diagnosis accounts for approximately 40% of all lung cancer cases, according to the Lung Cancer Foundation of America. The cancer begins in the lung's epithelial cells, which line the surface of the lungs and produce mucus.
The surgery, which lasted about 90 minutes and was part of a three-hour operating room session, was described as successful with no complications. The Vatican had previously stated that his recovery at the Agostino Gemelli University Hospital was anticipated to last approximately one week.