Pope Leo the 14th spent a “peaceful night” at the Gemelli hospital, in Rome, Italy, where he remains hospitalized this Wednesday (14), one day after undergoing surgery to remove a cancerous tumor from his right lung. The information was released by the Vatican, which did not provide other details about the pontiff’s health status.
According to the Holy See, the surgery carried out on Tuesday (13) confirmed the diagnosis of lung adenocarcinoma, a type of cancer that originates in the glandular cells of the lung tissue. Doctors removed the lower lobe of the right lung and are carrying out further tests to determine whether the disease has spread.
Leão 14, aged 71, had announced on Sunday (11) that doctors identified a nodule in the lung during recent examinations. At the time, he stated that the change had been detected at a very early stage and that he decided to undergo surgery following medical recommendations.
Recovery and test results should guide the decision about the need for complementary treatments, such as chemotherapy, radiotherapy, immunotherapy or targeted therapy. The Vatican’s initial forecast was that the pope would remain in the hospital for about a week.
All of the pontiff’s commitments were canceled until October 20. The hospitalization also raises doubts about the trip planned for November to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru, the country where Leo 14 served as a missionary for two decades and of which he is also a national.
Source: www.brasildefato.com.br
