Pope Leo recovering after lung cancer operation

Pope Leo XIV. [AFP]

Pope Leo XIV spent a calm night and was to begin post-surgery recovery Wednesday, a day after having a cancerous tumour removed from his lung.

Part of the pope's right lung was removed in the operation and the leader of the world's 1.4 billion Catholics is awaiting the results of tests to determine if the cancer has spread.

"The pope passed a calm night," the Vatican said, without providing any more details.

The sporty 71-year-old, who was only elected last year, made the surprise announcement that he would be undergoing surgery after Sunday prayers.

He underwent the 90-minute operation on Tuesday, after which the Vatican said he "woke up normally".

Experts said much would depend on how advanced the cancer found was, and whether it had spread, but the Vatican has said it was detected early and was localised.

"When caught in early stages, then it has a very very good prognosis, which is what we're hoping and praying for with Pope Leo," Juanita Mora, medical spokesperson for the American Lung Association, told AFP.

The Vatican has said it expects the recovery to take around a week and all the pope's audiences have been cancelled until October 20.

Up and about

Leo is staying in a room on the 10th floor of the building, next to a papal suite with a private chapel that is currently under renovation.

Professor Federico Venuta, head of Thoracic Surgery at the Policlinico Umberto 1 hospital in Rome, told AFP Wednesday he expected Leo to be up and about immediately.

"Generally, on the first day, patients undergoing this type of procedure are mobilized immediately," he said.

"They have a follow-up X-ray, resume eating with a light breakfast, and then start physical therapy right away -- the sooner they get out of bed, the better," he added.

Chicago-born Leo, the first US pope and a keen tennis-player, had entered the hospital smiling and waving earlier on Tuesday hours before the surgery.

In the hospital chapel, dozens of faithful prayed for the pope's health during the operation.

Uncertainty

The shock news of his illness, just a year after his election, has shaken the Catholic Church, according to Vatican watchers.

"The papacy has entered a new phase -- one marked by a considerable degree of uncertainty," said the Repubblica newspaper.

Filipino Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, the dean of the college of cardinals, is due to celebrate an important mass in St Peter's Basilica on Wednesday which was to have been held by the pope.

The surgery has raised questions about whether the US pontiff will go ahead with a lengthy visit next month to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru, where he worked as a missionary for two decades.

The surgery marks Leo's first hospitalisation since he became pope on May 8, 2025.

The Vatican has historically been very secretive about the health of popes, but began to be more transparent during the illness of Leo's predecessor Francis, an Argentine who freely discussed his ailments.