Pope Leo XIV was discharged from a Rome hospital on Saturday, four days after surgery to remove a tumor from his right lung.
The pope left Gemelli Hospital at about 3:30 p.m., arriving at the Vatican after a 10-minute car journey, roughly three days earlier than the Vatican had originally suggested for when he would return to his residence.
“I am much better, thank you,” he said in English to a journalist who asked about his health as he was driven from the hospital grounds.
Vatican officials said he would deliver his weekly prayer and blessing on Sunday from his apartment overlooking St. Peter’s Square, although all of his private audiences are suspended until Tuesday.
In a statement released on Saturday by the Vatican, Leo’s doctors said that he had undergone routine checkups and a chest X-ray had revealed that the affected lung was healing well. They said that he was “fit for discharge.”
Dozens of onlookers cheered as he walked out of the hospital, some of them shouting, “Long live the pope.” He paused briefly to greet patients, some of whom held intravenous poles; shook hands with medical staff; and thanked the surgeon who conducted his operation.
Leo also stopped to speak with a 13-year-old Ukrainian girl who had arrived in Rome last year to receive treatment for cancer and met him in December. On Saturday, she thanked the pope for his support and gave him a stuffed doll that was dressed like a pontiff.
The pope caught the world off guard when he announced last Sunday that doctors had found a small growth in his lung and had decided to operate. Two days later, surgeons removed a lower lobe of his right lung and confirmed that the pope had lung cancer, as preoperative tests had shown. Information later released by the Vatican suggested the cancer was caught at an early stage.
Leo’s illness has shaken his papacy, casting uncertainty over his immediate travel itinerary and long-term plans for the church, which he has so far carried out at a slow pace. The Vatican website on Saturday still said that he planned to travel next month to South America, but some officials have suggested the trip depends on the speed of his recovery.
When Leo, the first pope born in the United States, was elected at 69, less than 18 months ago, he seemed to have years ahead of him to shape the Roman Catholic Church. With the cancer diagnosis, Leo suddenly faces the same questions of longevity that hung over his predecessor, Francis, who grew gradually more frail during his 12-year papacy.
Leo was diagnosed with lung adenocarcinoma, a common form of lung cancer. Survival rates for it vary greatly depending on the stage of the cancer and a patient’s overall health. Leo is known to play tennis regularly and had no other reported medical problems.
Doctors have not released the results of additional tests to determine what additional treatments, if any, are warranted.
Lung cancer is still a leading cause of cancer death, but that rate is half of what it was in the 1990s, partly because newly developed treatments are working.
St. Peter’s Square was bustling with visitors on Saturday afternoon. Several said that they had been concerned about the pope and were relieved he was out of the hospital.
“We were really worried about the pope, for his health, and were praying for him,” said Carolina Rodriguez, from New York City, who was traveling with her family. “Thank God that he came out from the hospital,” she added.
“Overall, we knew he’d be OK,” said her daughter, Amber, who works in engineering. “At least we hoped so.”
Lilia Donato, a homemaker from Messina, Sicily, said it was good for the world that Leo was home. “We aren’t living in a positive moment” and the pope is an inspiring voice, she said: “Let’s hope world leaders listen to him, because we need words of peace, togetherness, and unity. This is important.”
The post ‘I Am Much Better, Thank You’: Pope Leo Leaves Hospital, Days After Lung Surgery appeared first on New York Times.
