Follow-up: Pope Leo XIV Holds First General Audience Since Cancer Surgery, Rides Popemobile Around St. Peter's Square Blessing Babies

ROME — Pope Leo XIV returned to St. Peter's Square on Wednesday, waving to pilgrims and blessing babies from his open-air popemobile as he held his first general audience since undergoing lung cancer surgery on October 13, Reuters reported on October 21. It was also his first ride in the popemobile since the surgery.

Crowds began gathering hours ahead of the 9:45 a.m. starting time, holding umbrellas under drizzling grey skies. The 71-year-old pontiff, who pledged on Sunday that he would slowly resume his duties as leader of the world's 1.4 billion Catholics, stood in the back of the vehicle as it drove through the square, waving, smiling and stopping to talk to pilgrims.

"The first thing I want to say to you is thank you for the support and prayers," Leo told the crowds in his opening remarks, without specifically mentioning his health. "Thanks be to God for his generosity," he said, speaking in a clear voice as cheers broke out in the square. "Let's renew our trust in the goodness and mercy of God." After touring the square, Leo offered a sermon in Italian. The 50-minute event, his first general audience since October 7, followed a normal format; in the only major change, he gave brief greetings afterwards in seven instead of nine other languages.

Leo had the lower lobe of his right lung removed in surgery at Rome's Agostino Gemelli University Policlinic on October 13 and was diagnosed with lung adenocarcinoma, the most common form of lung cancer. His doctors have said the surgery was completed successfully without complications, but they have not yet disclosed the size of the tumour or whether the disease had spread to nearby lymph nodes, key factors in determining prognosis. Elected in May 2025, Leo is the youngest pope in decades, and the diagnosis caused shock and raised questions about the future shape of his papacy.

The Vatican has provided no indication of Leo's schedule beyond Wednesday. The pope is due to visit Uruguay, Argentina and Peru from November 6 to 17, in one of the most intense trips arranged for a Catholic leader in decades, but it remains unclear if that trip will go ahead as planned. Leo's lead surgeon has said the pope could be fully recovered in time for the trip, but the Vatican's secretary of state has indicated the pope may need to adjust the pace of his schedule to aid in recovery.

Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)

Photo: 教宗良十四世乘教宗座车在圣伯多禄广场向信众致意（资料图，2025年5月摄；本日接见现场照片均为通讯社版权图，暂无开放授权版本）。哥伦比亚总统府官方照片，公共领域（Wikimedia Commons）。File photo: Pope Leo XIV riding in the popemobile in St. Peter's Square, May 2025. Official photo by the Presidency of Colombia, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

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