Pope Leo XIV announced Sunday he will undergo surgery to remove a nodular lesion on his lung that was recently discovered during medical checks.
The pope said it was found in an early stage and was “circumscribed.” He said surgery was scheduled in the coming days.
The 71-year-old Leo made the announcement during his Sunday noon blessing.
A statement Sunday from the Vatican spokesman, Matteo Bruni, didn’t say when the pope would be hospitalized, but that it would be in the “first days” of the week. He was expected to be treated at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital, which has a special apartment for the pope.
The statement didn’t say what impact, if any, the surgery or weeklong recovery would have on Leo’s planned Nov. 7-16 trip to Latin America, but the pope on Sunday asked for prayers for his upcoming trip to Peru especially.
The American pope has no previously known health problems and is known to be physically active, with weekly tennis games and swimming at the papal summer retreat in Castel Gandolfo.
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