Pope Leo XIV Discharged From Hospital After Surgery, Lung Cancer Diagnosis

Pope Leo XIV was discharged Saturday afternoon from Rome’s Agostino Gemelli University Hospital after a Tuesday operation to remove a cancerous tumor from his lung.

“At the time of his discharge from the hospital, Pope Leo was in entirely satisfactory clinical condition,” Dr. Stefano Margaritora — the director of the hospital’s thoracic surgery unit who operated on the pope — told Vatican News in an interview published Saturday. He also noted that the supreme pontiff’s blood test results were “completely normal” while his heart function was “fine.”

Professor Stefano Margaritora, who operated on Pope Leo XIV on October 13, speaks to Vatican News about the Holy Father’s health.

He said the Pope “truly put his heart” into his treatment, and could be “fully recovered” in about ten days.

There are “no clinical reasons” why… pic.twitter.com/FSPBtACoow

— Vatican News (@VaticanNews) October 17, 2026

The Holy See Press Office did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.

A Sala de Imprensa da Santa Sé confirmou a oração do Angelus amanhã, que o Vatican News transmitirá ao vivo, com comentários em português, a partir das 12h locais (11h |7h ). Você poderá acompanhar através da nossa página e dos nossos canais no YouTube e Facebook pic.twitter.com/HNuC1IEw0i

— Vatican News (@vaticannews_pt) October 17, 2026

Pope Leo XIV leaves Rome’s Gemelli hospital Oct. 17, four days after lung cancer surgery and heads back to the Vatican. (CNS photo/Lola Gomez) pic.twitter.com/RAzQ4IUWZA

— Catholic News Service (@CatholicNewsSvc) October 17, 2026

Pope Leo announced Oct. 11 he would undergo an operation to remove a “localized nodule,” an irregular lump of tissue, in his lung.

The surgical team confirmed an adenocarcinoma diagnosis — a common type of cancer which originates in the glandular cells — after removing the nodule from the lower lobe of his left lung during the roughly 90-minute operation, the Holy See Press Office stated in a Tuesday press release.

“The discovery of the Pope’s malignant lung tumor was entirely accidental, as unfortunately often happens,” Margaritora told Vatican News. “During routine abdominal examinations, this small spot was found in the chest, at the base of the lung … However, if this small spot had been a little higher up, it certainly would not have been seen.”

The survival rate for adenocarcinoma depends on its stage, according to City of Hope, a private, non-profit biomedical research, treatment, and education center headquartered in Duarte, California, dedicated to cancer, diabetes, and other life-threatening diseases. If the cancer is limited to the lung, the five-year survival rate is 63%; however, if it spreads to other areas of the body, that rate drops to 7%.

Margaritora told Vatican News that he’s “truly pleased” with the pope’s post-operative recovery.

“The Holy Father has put his heart and soul into his recovery, as the most motivated people do after this kind of operation,” he said. “As a result, he needed very little assistance from us. His determination to recover quickly has been effective in every respect.”