Pope Leo XIV has promised to gradually resume his duties after undergoing surgery to remove part of his right lung, addressing thousands of worshippers in St Peter’s Square on Sunday in his first major public appearance since the operation.
The 71-year-old pontiff underwent surgery on Tuesday at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital and was discharged on Saturday.
“I would like to thank all the people who have been praying for me in these days,” the leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics told the crowd.
“Having overcome this delicate phase, as you know I will now gradually resume my activities,” he said.
The pope appeared well and spoke normally as he addressed the faithful from the window of the Apostolic Palace during his traditional Angelus prayer.
A chorus of “Viva il papa!” — meaning “Hooray for the pope!” — rang out across the square as he appeared.
Worshippers welcomed his return to the Vatican, expressing relief over his recovery and hope that he would take sufficient time to regain his strength.
Christopher Butler, 68, a parish priest from Leeds in northern England, described Leo as a “great shepherd for the Catholic Church”.
“I’m concerned he needs to take time to make a full recovery but he’s obviously a very resilient man and keen to return to work, to lead the Church and to be a world leader,” Butler said.
Soledad Espinosa, 59, from Ecuador, said she was pleased to hear that the pope’s doctors might allow him to visit Latin America next month.
“We are all hoping for his recovery and that he has gotten through the situation well. We know that he is ok and we’re pleased,” she said.
Norma Grasso, 76, from Argentina, added: “We are waiting for him”.
Following the operation, questions had emerged over the pope’s planned visit to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru from November 6 to 17. Leo spent two decades as a missionary in Peru.
However, his surgeon, Stefano Margaritora, told Vatican News that he believed there were “no clinical reasons why the trip should not go ahead”.
‘Absolutely satisfactory’
The pope’s discharge from hospital on Saturday ended days of uncertainty among Vatican officials and Catholics worldwide, less than two years into the Chicago-born pontiff’s papacy.
Margaritora said Leo was in “absolutely satisfactory clinical condition”, estimating that he would need another 10 days to recover fully.
According to the surgeon, doctors discovered the tumour by chance during a routine abdominal X-ray that captured a “little spot” at the base of the pope’s right lung.
Although he described the operation as routine, Margaritora praised Leo’s commitment to his recovery, saying he “really put his heart and soul into it, like the most motivated patients”.
“His determination to achieve a very quick and very effective recovery from every point of view was really commendable,” the surgeon said.
Test results to establish whether the cancer has spread are still pending.
Despite his recent hospitalisation, Leo had already resumed some duties. On Friday, he called Russian President Vladimir Putin to urge a ceasefire in Oleshky, a Ukrainian city occupied by Russian forces.