Pope Leo has been diagnosed with lung adenocarcinoma after undergoing successful surgery to remove a portion of his right lung at a Rome hospital, prompting the Vatican to cancel his public audiences through October 20.

Pope Leo has been diagnosed with lung adenocarcinoma after undergoing successful surgery to remove a portion of his right lung at a Rome hospital, prompting the Vatican to cancel his public audiences through October 20.

Pope Leo has been diagnosed with lung adenocarcinoma after undergoing successful surgery to remove a portion of his right lung at a Rome hospital, prompting the Vatican to cancel his public audiences through October 20.

Pope Leo was diagnosed with lung adenocarcinoma after surgeons removed part of his right lung on Tuesday, marking a major health setback for the 71-year-old pontiff.

Tests confirmed the diagnosis of adenocarcinoma, a common form of lung cancer. Leo was admitted to Rome’s Gemelli Hospital for surgery to remove a growth detected during a recent routine health check.

Doctors said the procedure lasted about 90 minutes and was completed successfully, without complications.

What is lung adenocarcinoma?

Adenocarcinoma is a type of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) that develops when abnormal cells in the lung multiply uncontrollably and form a tumour.

Although lung adenocarcinoma is commonly associated with people who smoke or have smoked in the past, it is also the most common type of lung cancer among people who have never smoked. It is more common in women than in men and tends to affect younger people more frequently than some other types of lung cancer.

According to Harvard Medical School, lung adenocarcinoma is more likely than certain other types of lung cancer to remain localised in one area. When the cancer is confined to a limited region, treatment may be more effective, depending on the tumour’s characteristics and the patient’s overall health.

What are the symptoms?

One of the challenges in detecting lung adenocarcinoma early is that it may not cause noticeable symptoms in its initial stages. As a result, the cancer is sometimes discovered during a chest X-ray or CT scan performed for screening or another medical reason.

As the disease progresses, symptoms may include a persistent or worsening cough, shortness of breath, chest pain, unexplained weight loss and loss of appetite.

What we know about Pope Leo’s health?

According to the Vatican, the pontiff had shown no symptoms of infection or illness. The suspected growth was identified during routine medical examinations, with the diagnosis confirmed following surgery.

Surgeons removed the lower lobe of his right lung. Human lungs have five lobes: three in the right lung and two in the left. The left lung is smaller because the heart occupies space on that side of the chest.

Following the removal of a lung lobe, the remaining lung tissue can adapt to help maintain respiratory function in physically active people.

The surgery, which is usually performed under general anesthesia, will require a weeklong hospital stay and the Vatican on Monday cancelled all Leo's audiences through Oct 20.

According to an Associated Press report, lymph nodes may also have been removed and examined to determine whether the cancer had spread beyond the lung. However, Vatican has not disclosed those details.

“We now need to know how big it is, how many spots in the lung are involved. Is it just one nodule, or more than one, and the lymph nodes, are they cancerous?” Dr Stephen Liu, a lung cancer expert at Georgetown University’s Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, told AP.

If the cancer has spread, more tests will be needed to determine what kind of therapy to pursue, he said, adding that options include chemotherapy, a combination of chemotherapy and immunotherapy or targeted therapy.

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