Pope Leo’s doctors say no more treatment is needed

Pope Leo XIV does not need any more treatment after his lung cancer surgery. 

His doctors shared the news on Wednesday, October 21. 

The pope’s personal physician, Dr. Luigi Carbone, and Professor Stefano Margaritora, who led the surgical team, said the final test results on the removed tissue were issued that day. 

The results confirmed that the tumor was a lung adenocarcinoma and that the disease was localised. A follow-up cancer assessment found that “no further treatment is necessary.”

Pope Leo, 71, had the lower lobe of his right lung removed on October 13. It was his first hospital stay since he became pontiff in May 2025. 

The Vatican said the surgery, which went on for about three hours, was a success and had no complications.

He first shared the plan on October 11. He spoke at his weekly blessing in St. Peter’s Square. He said doctors had advised the surgery.

The pope left Rome’s Agostino Gemelli Hospital on Saturday, October 17.

Adenocarcinoma is the most common type of lung cancer, per the Lung Cancer Foundation of America. It grows slowly. Doctors can often find it before it spreads. 

The pope is already back at work and even addressed a crowd at St. Peter’s Square on Wednesday.