Pope Leo announces he will undergo surgery to remove lung nodule

Pope Leo XIV has announced he will undergo surgery to remove a localized lung nodule.

“During some check-ups, doctors discovered a localized nodule on my lung,” the 71-year-old pope told those gathered in St Peter’s Square for the Angelus prayer on Sunday.

“It was detected at a very early stage and is well-defined. The doctors deem it advisable to intervene, so, following their advice, I have decided to undergo surgery to remove it.”

A lung nodule is a small mass of dense tissue on the lung and most are non-cancerous.

Pope Leo said the surgery was planned in the “coming days”, with a Vatican spokesman clarifying that the procedure was scheduled for early next week and that he would need a week in hospital to recover.

Leo is relatively young for a pope, and is generally seen to be in good health. He plays tennis and remains physically active.

Leo XIV is preparing for a major visit to Latin America from 6-17 November where he is scheduled to visit Uruguay, Argentina and Peru. The pope has a demanding daily schedule of meetings and public events, although on Tuesday takes a day off at the papal retreat of Castel Gandolfo.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

教宗利奥十四世宣布他将接受手术切除肺部局部结节。

“在几次检查中，医生发现我的肺部有一个局部结节，”这位71岁的教皇周日在圣彼得广场参加《三钟经》祈祷的信众面前说道。

“肿瘤发现得非常早，而且边界清晰。医生认为有必要进行干预，因此，我听从了他们的建议，决定接受手术切除。”

肺结节是肺部致密组织形成的小肿块，大多数都是良性的。

教宗利奥表示，手术计划在“未来几天”进行，梵蒂冈发言人澄清说，手术安排在下周初，他需要住院一周才能康复。

利奥教皇相对年轻，身体也很健康。他喜欢打网球，保持着积极的身体活动。

利奥十四世教宗正准备于11月6日至17日对拉丁美洲进行重要访问，期间他将访问乌拉圭、阿根廷和秘鲁。教宗每日行程安排紧凑，包括各种会议和公开活动，不过他将于周二在教宗静修地冈道尔夫堡休息一天。

这是一则正在更新的新闻。