Praying for Pope Leo

The entire world unites in prayer for the well-being of Pope Leo XIV as we hear that doctors removed part of his right lung during a 90-minute operation on Tuesday after finding a cancerous growth. The Pope woke up normally after the operation and is back in his room on the 10th floor of Rome's Gemelli hospital. When he recovered, he asked for dinner. To ensure the procedure was radical, the lower lobe of the right lung was removed, since the operation confirmed the diagnosis of a pulmonary adenocarcinoma, as suspected from the pre-operative tests. The Holy Father was in the operating room for about 3 hours, and the duration of the operation itself was around 90 minutes. The surgery consisted mainly in removing a nodule from his lung that was successful and there were no complications. If there was any sign that the cancer had spread further, a Vatican source said further tests were being carried out. The Vatican has historically been very secretive about the health of popes, but began to be more transparent during the illness of Leo's predecessor Francis, an Argentine who freely discussed his ailments. Ahead of the surgery, the Vatican said the Pope's recovery time was expected to be about a week. His audiences have been cancelled until October 20. Chicago-born Leo, the first US pope, is sporty and believed to generally be in good health. He is scheduled to travel to South America from November 6-17 to visit Uruguay, Argentina and Peru where he was a missionary for several years. It was not immediately clear what would happen if the pope was forced into a longer recovery. We continue to pray for his full recovery and a quiet, peaceful convalescence.