Pope Leo XIV Celebrates Mass During Hospital Recovery
Pope Leo XIV has celebrated Mass at a Rome hospital following surgery to remove part of his right lung. Photographs released by the Vatican on Friday were the first images of the 71-year-old pontiff made public since the operation. They show him wearing a green robe beside a makeshift altar on the tenth floor of Gemelli Hospital.
The Vatican said Pope Leo celebrated Mass with medical and nursing staff and thanked them for their service. One photograph shows him standing before a white wall bearing a wooden crucifix. Another shows him alongside his personal secretary. The images were released as doctors reported that tests showed steady improvement in the Pope’s general condition.
The surgery took place on Tuesday afternoon. Surgeons removed the entire lower lobe of his right lung, a step the Vatican said was intended to ensure the procedure was thorough. The Vatican reported that the operation was successful and proceeded without complications. It said Pope Leo awoke normally, spent a short period under observation and then returned to his hospital room.
Tests of the tissue removed during surgery confirmed lung adenocarcinoma. Doctors said a chest X-ray showed good recovery of the operated lung. The Vatican has said the Pope showed no symptoms of infection or illness before the procedure. He is expected to remain in hospital for about a week while he recovers.
Pope Leo had announced the planned operation during his weekly Sunday prayers in St Peter’s Square. He told those gathered that doctors had found a well-contained nodule on his lung at an early stage and had advised its removal. A nodule is not necessarily cancerous, but the Vatican said the subsequent examination confirmed what pre-operative tests had suggested. For now, the Vatican’s updates describe an uncomplicated operation and improvement during the first days of his recovery, while the Pope remains under medical care at Gemelli Hospital.