Pope Leo XIV, the Pontiff today at Gemelli for lung surgery

The Holy Father will be operated on this afternoon, or at the latest on Wednesday morning, for a nodule in his lung that was discovered during a routine check-up. All hearings until Tuesday 20 October have been cancelled, as a week of post-operative hospitalization is expected

Pope Leo The goal is to return to everyday life as soon as possible, but it will depend on the outcome of the surgery and the subsequent biopsy.

The intervention

According to what we learn, the surgery could be carried out as early as this afternoon, according to some sources around 4pm. If any further pre-operative steps were necessary, it could be postponed to Wednesday morning. The Pope's intervention should be handled by Professor Stefano Margaritora, director of the complex Thoracic Surgery Unit at Gemelli, an expert in minimally invasive techniques, and the Pope's personal doctor, Doctor Luigi Carbone, should also be present.

All hearings until September 20th cancelled

In the meantime, all hearings until Tuesday 20 October have been cancelled, given that - as announced from the beginning - a week of post-operative hospitalization is expected. Doubt remains about the Angelus on Sunday 18 March, but according to Vatican sources "we will see from day to day". Yesterday, however, the Pope regularly followed the activities on his agenda, also meeting the benefactors of the Circolo San Pietro.

“It seems like something very under control.”

Meanwhile, in the buildings of the Holy See there seems to be an atmosphere of tranquility. "I saw him very well, in excellent spirits and I would say that, if it hadn't been for the announcement he himself had made, he doesn't give the impression of a sick person: he gets up, he sits down, there are no symptoms or pain or discomfort", reported Monsignor Jorge Eduardo Lozano, archbishop of San Juan, Argentina, who met him yesterday morning. Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa is also reassuring: "From the inside they reassured us. The temper is strong and the doctors are good. It seems like something that is very much under control." "I am certain - said Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi -, also from the news we have, that this intervention is not a serious commitment".