Follow-Up: Pope Leo XIV Resumes Working at Gemelli Hospital, Meets Chief of Staff Rudelli as Doctors Report Good Recovery of Operated Lung

ROME — Pope Leo XIV resumed working from Rome's Gemelli hospital on Thursday, October 15, and met with the Vatican chief of staff, or "substitute," Archbishop Paolo Rudelli, according to the Associated Press. Rudelli handles much of the day-to-day administrative work of the Holy See, the Vatican said, and Leo has resumed handling documents and church business from the hospital.

In a medical update on Thursday, Leo's personal doctor, Dr. Luigi Carbone, and Dr. Stefano Margaritora, head of thoracic surgery at Gemelli hospital, reported that the pope's post-operative tests remained within normal levels and that a chest X-ray showed the operated lung recovering well, according to the Associated Press. Thursday's physiotherapy session involved full mobility exercises, the pope carried out his daily activities independently, and the doctors said his post-operative recovery is proceeding as expected overall.

For a second day, Leo celebrated Mass with other priests in a special chapel set up near his room on the 10th floor of the hospital, Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said, according to the Associated Press.

Background: The 71-year-old Leo had the lower lobe of his right lung removed on Tuesday, October 13, after doctors identified a suspected cancerous nodule; the surgery confirmed adenocarcinoma, the most common type of lung cancer. GSM reported on October 13 that the surgery had been completed successfully (d20261013-faith-pope1) and that pathology had confirmed lung adenocarcinoma (d20261013-faith-pope2). The Vatican had previously canceled the pope's audiences through October 20, and he is expected to remain hospitalized until at least October 20, according to the Associated Press.

Doctors are still awaiting test results to determine the precise molecular makeup of the cancer, whether it has spread beyond the removed lobe and whether any further treatment is necessary, according to the Associated Press; no conclusion has been announced.

As for travel, Leo is scheduled to visit South America from November 6 to 17, with stops in Peru, Uruguay and Argentina. Asked whether any changes to the trip were expected, Bruni announced no change and pointed to Leo's words on Sunday, when the pope, greeting a Peruvian group in Spanish, thanked them for their prayers for the pastoral visit he will make to Peru, according to the Associated Press.

Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)

Photo: 罗马杰梅利医院院内建筑（教宗良十四世在此住院恢复；资料图，非本日现场），Dora Dragoni 摄，CC BY 3.0（Wikimedia Commons） / Buildings inside Rome's Gemelli hospital, where Pope Leo XIV is recovering (file photo, not from today). Photo: Dora Dragoni, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

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