Pope Leo XIV was admitted to Gemelli Hospital in Rome on Tuesday for surgery to remove a nodule from his lung, with cardinals describing him as calm and relaxed ahead of the procedure.
The 71-year-old pontiff arrived at the hospital by car after leaving the Vatican, smiling and waving to well-wishers gathered outside the facility.
The Vatican said the operation would take place on Tuesday afternoon and be performed by the hospital’s thoracic surgery team led by Stefano Margaritora.
The procedure marks Leo’s first hospitalisation since he became head of the Catholic Church on May 8, 2025.
On Sunday, the pope announced after the Angelus prayers that doctors had discovered the pulmonary nodule, a small growth of tissue in the lung, during recent medical checks.
“The doctors believe it would be right to intervene,” he told worshippers in St Peter’s Square.
Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin told Italian news agency ANSA that the pope had been “very calm” about the condition when they met on Monday.
Japanese Cardinal Tarcisio Isao Kikuchi also told the La Repubblica newspaper that Leo was “very relaxed, as he always is, and jokey, as usual”.
The Vatican expects the pope’s recovery to take about a week. His public audiences have been cancelled until October 20.
Gemelli Hospital is a regular treatment centre for popes, who usually stay in a secure suite on the 10th floor equipped with a small chapel, kitchen, bathroom and meeting room.
However, the usual papal suite is undergoing renovation, so Leo will occupy another suite on the same floor under tight security.
He is also expected to have his personal nurse, Massimiliano Strappetti, by his side. Strappetti cared for Pope Francis during several hospital stays before his death last year.
The Vatican said the nodule was detected during routine health checks and that the pope had not experienced symptoms that prompted doctors to examine his lungs.
Most pulmonary nodules are benign, although some may indicate early-stage lung cancer.
Marco Scarci, a thoracic surgery expert in the United Kingdom, told AFP that the procedure was not particularly risky and that he expected Leo to recover quickly.
However, he noted that regaining his previous level of fitness could take up to three months.
Professor Federico Venuta, head of thoracic surgery at Rome’s Policlinico Umberto I hospital, explained that small lung nodules are sometimes called “coin lesions” because they resemble coins on X-rays.
He said the growths may result from inflammation, infection, autoimmune conditions or congenital abnormalities, although some can be malignant.
Venuta added that removing a nodule may require general anaesthesia, while the precise approach depends on its location and characteristics.
He said the outlook would remain favourable even if the nodule proved cancerous, provided the disease was detected early and had not spread to other parts of the body.
Pope Leo XIV is scheduled to visit Uruguay, Argentina and Peru from November 6 to 17.
Venuta said air travel is generally avoided for about 20 days after such procedures, although the timing may depend on the patient’s recovery and medical advice.
The Vatican has not announced any change to the pope’s planned South American trip.
