Pope Leo says he will gradually resume duties after cancer surgery

Pope Leo XIV thanked thousands gathered in St. Peter’s Square on Sunday for their prayers while he was hospitalized for surgery to remove a malignant tumor. He said he is now “in a delicate phase” behind him and will gradually resume his usual duties, speaking four days after doctors removed the lower lobe of his right lung. The pontiff, 71, revealed last week that a nodule had been found on his lung and was to be surgically taken out; the operation confirmed adenocarcinoma, the most common type of lung cancer. He expressed gratitude to staff at Rome’s Gemelli hospital and told reporters he is “much better.”