By Enyichukwu Enemanna
Pope Leo XIV on Sunday announced he would be operated “in the coming days” for a lump on his lung, saying it had been located “at a very early stage”.
“During recent medical checks, a nodule on my lung was found. It has been detected at a very early stage and is very localised,” the 71-year-old said in a weekly address in St Peter’s Square.
“The doctors believe it would be right to intervene and so, following their advice, I have decided to have the operation to remove it. The operation is already planned in the coming days,” AFP report quotes him as as saying.
Following the pope’s statement during his Angelus prayers, the Vatican press office said the expected recovery time from the operation would be around one week.
Chicago-born Leo became the first US pope last year following the death of his Argentine predecessor Francis on April 21, 2025 at the age of 88.
Francis spent weeks at Rome’s Gemelli hospital, where popes traditionally go for medical treatment.
Leo was elected leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics on May 8, 2025.
After the US and Israel launched a war against Iran in February, the pope became a high-profile critic of the conflict.
He condemned US President Donald Trump’s threat to destroy Iran as “truly unacceptable” and urged Ameri
