Pope Leo XIV is expected to be discharged from the hospital Saturday, Oct. 17, four days after having surgery for lung cancer.
Leo's doctors Luigi Carbone and Stefano Margaritora said the Pope's clinical condition is good enough to allow him to leave the hospital, the Vatican said on Saturday. The 71-year-old pontiff underwent blood tests and a chest X-ray in the morning.
"Following the doctors’ assessment this morning, Pope Leo XIV will be discharged today from Gemelli Hospital, where he was hospitalized for surgery on his right lung," read a statement from the Holy See Press Office. "He will leave the hospital in the early afternoon and return to the Vatican."
On Sunday, Pope Leo will make his first public appearance since surgery on Oct. 13.
He will lead the Angelus prayer from the window of the papal apartment, according to the press office.
The pope underwent a procedure on Oct. 13 to remove a small lung nodule doctors had discovered in a recent health checkup. The growth was later diagnosed as lung adenocarcinoma, a common form of lung cancer.
The pope's doctors have said the surgery was completed successfully, without complications. They have not yet disclosed the size of the tumor or whether the disease had spread to nearby lymph nodes, key factors in determining prognosis, Reuters reported.
Pope Leo will again celebrate Mass in hospital
Before returning to the Vatican, the pope will celebrate Mass at the hospital in Rome, according to the Press Office. It will be the second consecutive day in which the pope celebrates mass there.
On Oct. 16, Leo celebrated Mass in a room set up on the 10th floor of Gemelli Hospital, where he distributed Communion to attendees. Members of the hospital's medical and nursing staff and the Vatican City State Gendarmerie Corps attended.
Pope Leo speaks with Putin
Also on Friday, Oct. 16, Pope Leo spoke by telephone with Russian leader Vladimir Putin, according to the Holy See Press Office.
"During the conversation, the Holy Father expressed his deep concern about the grave humanitarian situation in the city of Oleshky, in the Kherson region, and called for a ceasefire to allow the delivery of food and medical assistance, and the voluntary and safe evacuation of the civilian population," said the statement.
The pope is expected to maintain a busy post-operation schedule, even though some cardinals began to publicly express concern about the pope's health, Reuters reported.
The Vatican said work on his November 6 to 17 visit to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru, one of the most intense arranged for a pope in decades, was "going forward."
Contributing: Saman Shafiq
Mike Snider is a national trending news reporter for USA TODAY. You can follow him on Threads, Bluesky, X and email him at mikegsnider & @mikegsnider.bsky.social & @mikesnider & msnider@usatoday.com.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Pope Leo to leave hospital four days after cancer surgery
