Pope Leo XIV will leave the Gemelli hospital in Rome on Saturday, where he has been recovering from lung cancer surgery, the Vatican said. Doctors have deemed him “fit for discharge” and he is due to leave in the early afternoon.
The 71-year-old pope has been at the hospital, north of the Vatican, since Tuesday, when doctors removed part of his right lung to extract a cancerous tumour. News that the otherwise healthy and sporty pope had the tumour removed has rattled the Vatican and the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics.
Doctors cite blood tests and chest X-ray
In a note published by the Vatican, doctors Luigi Carbone and Stefano Margaritora said the decision followed blood tests, a chest X-ray taken that morning and an evaluation of the clinical picture. The Vatican confirmed that the pope would be discharged that day.
His doctors say his recovery is progressing normally. They are still awaiting the results of tests that will determine the next course of action.
Angelus to be prayed from papal apartment window
The Vatican said the pope would return to the Vatican and recite the Angelus prayer the following day from the window of the papal apartment. The prayer is usually given from the Apostolic Palace window overlooking St Peter’s Square.
Former popes John Paul II and Francis, who were also hospitalised at the Gemelli, delivered the prayer from their hospital room windows in past years. The Vatican’s press office said Leo had celebrated mass on Saturday, as he had in recent days, in a room on the 10th floor of the hospital.
South America trip and audiences in doubt
Leo has resumed some work, calling Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday to urge a ceasefire in the Russian-occupied Ukrainian city of Oleshky. He has cancelled all audiences until October 20.
A planned papal trip to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru, scheduled for November 6-17, remains uncertain. Pope watchers say Leo, who spent two decades as a missionary in Peru, is anxious to make the journey but will likely follow his doctors’ recommendations.
