Cardinal Blase Cupich, the Archbishop of Chicago, called on the faithful to join him in praying for Pope Leo XIV after the pontiff revealed he will undergo surgery “in the coming days” to remove a nodule on his lung, which marks the first major health event of his tenure.
The 71-year-old Leo said the nodule was found at an early stage and was “circumscribed” or small and well-localized. The Vatican said Leo’s expected recovery time from surgery would be a week.
Following the news, Cupich issued a statement, saying, in part, “Please join me and the people of the Holy Father’s home diocese in praying for his swift and complete recovery. May the Holy Spirit guide the hands of the surgeons and may the Blessed Mother hold Pope Leo in the days ahead as he returns to full health.”
The Chicago-born pope made the announcement during his Sunday noon blessing in an unusual display of transparency about his health. He thanked the crowd for their closeness and entrusted himself to their prayers.
The Vatican didn’t say exactly when the surgery would take place, other than in the early days of this week. Leo has one upcoming main event: the closing Mass on Wednesday of a weeklong conference on family ministry, but Vatican officials suggested he might miss it.
Leo has no previously known health problems and is physically active, with weekly tennis matches and swimming at the papal summer retreat in Castel Gandolfo.
The pope has a major trip planned Nov. 6-17 to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru. It’s unclear how or whether the planned surgery and recovery might affect the itinerary, but Leo said earlier in his remarks Sunday that he still planned to go.
In his remarks, delivered in Italian, Leo said that during a recent medical check, “doctors found a circumscribed nodule in my lung. It was detected at a very early stage and is well-localized. The doctors believe it’s best to take action, so, following their advice, I have decided to have surgery to remove it.”
He thanked the faithful “for your spiritual support, and I entrust myself to your prayers.”
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