Will the Pope Go to South America? Leo XIV Calls the Vatican’s No. 3 Official for an In-Person Meeting at the Hospital. Here’s the Latest on the Pope’s Health

(ZENIT News / Rome, 10.15.2026).- Pope Leo XIV has begun walking independently, resumed his normal diet and returned to some official duties from his hospital room following surgery for lung cancer, the Vatican reported on Thursday, October 15. While doctors describe his postoperative recovery as proceeding according to plan, uncertainty remains over whether the 71-year-old pontiff will be able to undertake his scheduled visit to Peru, Uruguay and Argentina from November 6 to 17.

The latest medical updates offer encouraging signs just two days after the Pope underwent surgery at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital. His medical team, led by his personal physician, Dr. Luigi Carbone, and thoracic surgery chief Professor Stefano Margaritora, reported that postoperative blood tests and a chest X-ray showed results within the expected range for the procedure. The imaging also indicated good recovery of the operated lung.

Leo received respiratory physiotherapy and completed mobility exercises, beginning to walk around his hospital room and carrying out daily activities independently. He has also returned to his usual diet, eating both breakfast and lunch. According to his doctors, his recovery is following the expected course.

The Vatican had already announced on Thursday morning that the Pope had spent a good night in hospital, got up and eaten breakfast. A further indication of his improving condition came shortly after 4 p.m., when the Holy See Press Office confirmed that he had resumed some of his responsibilities.

Leo met with Archbishop Paolo Rudelli, the Substitute for General Affairs of the Secretariat of State, who oversees much of the Vatican’s day-to-day administrative work (a sort of interior minister, also known as the Vatican’s “Number 3”). The meeting demonstrated that the Pope was beginning to reconnect with the demands of his office, even while remaining under medical supervision.

The pontiff also celebrated Mass for the second consecutive day with other priests in a chapel established near his room on the hospital’s tenth floor, according to Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni. The celebration offered a glimpse of how Leo has maintained his spiritual routine during his hospitalization.

The encouraging recovery reports follow a more serious development than initially anticipated. On Tuesday, October 13, Leo underwent surgery to remove the lower lobe of his right lung after doctors identified a suspicious nodule. The operation confirmed that he had adenocarcinoma, the most common type of lung cancer.

Although the affected lobe has been removed, important medical questions remain unanswered. Doctors are awaiting further tests to establish the tumor’s precise molecular characteristics, determine whether the disease has spread beyond the removed tissue and assess whether additional treatment will be necessary. These findings will be crucial in determining the Pope’s longer-term prognosis and recovery needs.

The distinction between a satisfactory immediate recovery and a complete assessment of the disease is important. Normal postoperative results are encouraging, but they do not, by themselves, establish whether further treatment will be required or how quickly Leo will regain his full strength.

That uncertainty has placed the Pope’s upcoming South American journey under scrutiny. Scheduled for November 6–17, the trip is expected to include Peru, Uruguay and Argentina. Leo had appealed for prayers for the planned pastoral visit to Peru on Sunday, shortly before undergoing surgery.

However, the removal of an entire lung lobe, rather than simply the suspicious nodule, has raised questions about whether the original timetable remains realistic. In Peru, President Keiko Fujimori has suggested that the visit could be postponed, while much of the Argentine press has questioned whether the Pope could safely undertake such an extensive international journey so soon after surgery.

A source at the Apostolic Nunciature in Buenos Aires told ZENIT that the circumstances had changed significantly: the trip had initially appeared feasible when the planned intervention involved removing only the nodule, but the removal of a lung lobe altered the expected recovery period.

No definitive change to the itinerary was announced in Thursday’s updates. For now, the decision will depend on the medical evidence, the Pope’s progress and the demands of the proposed journey.

Leo’s return to limited duties is a positive development for the Vatican, but it should not be confused with a declaration that the health concerns have been resolved. His immediate recovery appears to be progressing well; the extent of any further treatment and the timing of his return to a full schedule remain open questions.

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