‘A bolt from the blue’: Shock cancer diagnosis raises uncertainty for Leo’s papacy

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Thousands of people congregated in the Vatican’s St. Peter’s Square on Wednesday for a Mass that Pope Leo should have been presiding over. Instead, another senior Catholic Church official took his place, while the first American pope recovered in a hospital after being diagnosed with lung cancer following an operation to remove a lobe of his right lung.

The pope’s cancer diagnosis , confirmed on Tuesday, has caused alarm across the Catholic world. Pope Leo was elected less than 18 months ago at the age of 69, the youngest man chosen to lead the Catholic Church since Pope John Paul II almost 40 years earlier. Given his relatively youthful age, the view in the Vatican and among church leaders was that Leo had a long papacy in front of him. That assumption is now being tested.

The era of papal health struggles had, many in the Vatican hoped, been put aside in the short term. Leo’s predecessor Pope Francis, elected at 76 and with part of his right lung missing, had a series of health problems towards the end of his pontificate, and spent weeks in the Gemelli hospital with pneumonia . Francis, who had served as pope since 2013 , died of a stroke and heart failure in April 2025.

Pope Leo’s approach to his health has been steady, sensible and balanced. He goes to the papal retreat at Castel Gandolfo outside of Rome every Tuesday for a day off. He plays tennis, he swims, and as a cardinal had a personal trainer.

All of that added to the shock of his hospital admission. “No one expected it,” Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Holy See Secretary of State, told reporters, likening it to a “bolt from the blue.” The cardinal, speaking before the cancer diagnosis was confirmed, added: “I am worried.”

Leo XIV has cancelled all his audiences until October 20 as he continues his recovery. The doctors are confident that the cancer was removed during surgery, but further tests are needed.

For the pope, near term plans are up in the air. Leo went into hospital in the middle of a major Vatican gathering of bishops and church leaders, which he had convened. The discussions focused on how the church can support couples and families a decade on from a major document issued by Pope Francis, which opened the possibility of divorced and remarried Catholics being able to receive communion.

Stoyan Nenov/Reuters

Here are the details on Pope’s cancer procedure

The meeting was an example of Leo, in his own style, seeking to implement the reforms begun by his predecessor. But his operation meant he could not take part in the Mass that concluded the gathering or take an active part in the meetings.

“It’s very concerning and I think the more recent news that it is actually a cancer is very worrying for everybody,” Archbishop Tim Costelloe, the president of the Australian Bishops’ Conference, said just off St Peter’s Square following the Mass on Wednesday. The archbishop had been taking part in the gathering and said he’d written to the pope on behalf of his country’s bishops assuring him of prayers and support.

Questions are being asked of future papal travel. From Nov. 6-17, the pope is due to be in Latin America for an intense three country tour to Uruguay, Argentina and an emotional “homecoming” to Peru, where he served as a missionary and bishop . His packed itinerary includes 14 flights, 50 events and visits to some high-altitude parts of the continent.

Archbishop Costelloe says the latest developments “inevitably” raise questions about the forthcoming trip, but stressed Leo is “a strong man, he’s a fit man” and there was plenty of hope he “can get past this.” As of Wednesday, no changes have been announced to the dates of the trip.

Leo XIV, a meticulous and details-oriented leader, made sure everything was in order before his operation. A couple of days before announcing he was going in for surgery, the pope confirmed the election of Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, a high-ranking Vatican official from the Philippines, to the important role of Dean of the College of Cardinals. This is the position held by the fictional Cardinal Lawrence played by Ralph Fiennes in the movie “Conclave,” released in the months before the real-life papal election that chose Leo.

The appointment of Tagle, who stood in for Leo to preside at Wednesday’s mass at the Vatican, has acquired a new significance with the pope in the hospital. The dean, who is the “first among equals” leader of the college, plays a crucial role in presiding over a conclave (providing he’s under 80) and the pre-conclave meetings. Any future papal election is considered far into the future. But the appointment of the 69-year-old Tagle, a charismatic figure previously tipped as a possible pope, was an important piece of housekeeping.

Leo’s cancer diagnosis has been met by an outpouring of public support. It offers an opportunity for him to connect with so many other individuals and families who have been affected by the illness.

“Pope Leo has shown compassionate solidarity with so many people encountering struggles and challenges in their lives,” Fr. Joseph Farrell, the leader of the Augustinian religious order and a friend of the pope, told CNN. “As Augustinians, we invite all people to show that same loving, prayerful solidarity with the Holy Father.” Leo is an Augustinian and a former leader of the order.

There is a history of cancer in the pope’s family, with his eldest brother Louis Prevost currently being treated for the illness, which he was first diagnosed with in 2017. The pope’s mother, Mildred, died of cancer in 1990. His father, also Louis, died of colon cancer and heart disease in 1997.

While inside the Vatican there is worry about his health, the cogs of the church’s central administration will keep on turning. “It’s not a case of running around pulling hair out,” one official told CNN. “We are getting on with the work inside the dicasteries (Vatican departments) which support the pope’s ministry.” And the pope can still govern the church from his hospital bed.

Those who know the pope well say he will be keen to bounce back. Elise Allen, who interviewed the pope in July 2025 for her book on Leo XIV, described the situation as a “waiting game” but it was important not to jump to too many conclusions. “He’s a very hard worker, he’s very determined, he’s going to want to get back into the swing of things very quickly if that’s possible,” she told CNN.

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Allen said, however, that his hospitalization may lead him to “scale back” some of his appointments and commitments. She also pointed out that his last major health crisis, as a young missionary sent to Peru, was definitive. In 1985, soon after arriving in the country, Leo was struck down with Typhoid fever. Allen said that it was a turning point as, following his recovery, it led him to embrace his work in South America.

Both popes John Paul II and Francis show how the role of pontiff involves an element of public suffering. And as recent conclaves have elected men in their late 60s and 70s, health difficulties are never far around the corner. “Fragility deserves special attention,” Leo XIV said in his speech to the family life gathering last week. “The experience of families has something to teach everyone, since fragility belongs to our common human condition and therefore also to the life of the Church.”

The pope is now embracing that same fragility and uncertainty that many others with a similar diagnosis have faced.

阿尔贝托·皮佐利/法新社/盖蒂图片社

周三，数千人聚集在梵蒂冈圣彼得广场，参加一场原本应由教宗利奥主持的弥撒。然而，由于利奥教宗在接受右肺叶切除手术后被诊断出肺癌，目前正在医院接受治疗，因此由另一位天主教高级官员代替他主持了弥撒。利奥教宗是历史上第一位美国籍教宗。

教宗良十三世周二确诊癌症的消息震惊了整个天主教世界。良十三世当选教宗还不到18个月，时年69岁，是自近40年前的若望保禄二世以来最年轻的天主教教宗。鉴于他相对年轻的年龄，梵蒂冈和教会领袖普遍认为良十三世的教宗任期还会很长。如今，这一假设正面临考验。

梵蒂冈许多人曾希望，教宗健康状况不佳的时代在短期内能够结束。利奥的前任教宗方济各，76岁当选，且右肺部分缺失，在其教宗任期后期遭遇了一系列健康问题，并因肺炎在杰梅利医院住了数周。方济各自2013年起担任教宗，于2025年4月因中风和心力衰竭去世。

教宗良十三世对待健康的方式一直稳健、明智且平衡。他每周二都会前往位于罗马郊外冈道尔夫堡的教宗静修处休息一天。他打网球、游泳，而且在担任枢机主教期间还聘请了私人教练。

这一切都加剧了他入院的震惊。“谁也没想到，”教廷国务卿皮埃特罗·帕罗林枢机主教告诉记者，并将其比作“晴天霹雳”。在癌症诊断得到确认之前，枢机主教补充道：“我很担心。”

为继续康复，利奥十四世已取消10月20日之前的所有接见活动。医生们确信手术已切除癌细胞，但仍需进行进一步检查。

对教宗而言，近期计划尚不明朗。利奥教宗在梵蒂冈召开的一次重要主教和教会领袖会议上入院治疗，此次会议由他召集。会议的讨论重点是，在教宗方济各十年前发布一份重要文件，允许离异再婚的天主教徒领圣体之后，教会如何更好地支持夫妇和家庭。

斯托扬·内诺夫/路透社

以下是教皇癌症治疗手术的详细情况。

这次会议体现了利奥十三世以他特有的方式，力图落实其前任开启的改革。但由于手术，他无法参加会议结束时的弥撒，也无法积极参与后续的会议。

“这非常令人担忧，而且我认为最近得知确诊为癌症的消息更是让每个人都忧心忡忡，”澳大利亚主教团主席蒂姆·科斯特洛总主教周三在圣彼得广场弥撒结束后说道。科斯特洛总主教当时正在参加集会，他表示已代表澳大利亚主教致信教宗，向他表达祈祷和支持。

人们开始关注教宗未来的出行安排。11月6日至17日，教宗将对拉丁美洲进行密集的三国访问，包括乌拉圭、阿根廷，以及充满情感的“回家”之旅——重返他曾担任传教士和主教的秘鲁。他的行程安排得满满当当，包括14次飞行、50场活动，以及对拉丁美洲一些高海拔地区的访问。

科斯特洛大主教表示，最新事态发展“不可避免地”引发了人们对即将到来的访问的疑问，但他强调利奥“身体强壮，精神矍铄”，并表示大家对他“能够渡过难关”充满信心。截至周三，访问日期尚未宣布任何变更。

利奥十四世是一位一丝不苟、注重细节的领袖，在手术前他确保一切安排妥当。就在宣布即将接受手术的前几天，教宗确认了来自菲律宾的梵蒂冈高级官员路易斯·安东尼奥·塔格莱枢机主教当选为枢机团团长这一重要职位。这一职位正是电影《教宗选举秘密会议》（Conclave）中由拉尔夫·费因斯饰演的虚构人物劳伦斯枢机主教的职位。这部电影上映于利奥十四世当选教宗的几个月前。

塔格莱代替利奥十三世主持了周三在梵蒂冈举行的弥撒，鉴于教宗利奥十三世住院，这一任命更添一层意义。作为教廷最高领导人，教廷院长在主持教宗选举秘密会议（前提是他未满80岁）和会前会议中扮演着至关重要的角色。任何未来的教宗选举都被视为遥远的未来。但任命现年69岁的塔格莱——这位魅力非凡、此前曾被视为教宗候选人的人物——是一项重要的人事安排。

利奥被诊断出癌症后，公众纷纷表达了支持。这让他有机会与许多其他受癌症影响的个人和家庭建立联系。

“教宗良十三世对许多在生活中遭遇困境和挑战的人们展现了充满同情和团结的精神，”奥斯定会修会会长、教宗良十三世的朋友约瑟夫·法雷尔神父告诉CNN。“作为奥斯定会修士，我们邀请所有人以同样的爱心和虔诚的祈祷与教宗团结一致。”良十三世本人也是奥斯定会修士，并曾担任该修会会长。

教宗家族有癌症病史，他的大哥路易·普雷沃斯特目前正在接受癌症治疗，他于2017年首次被确诊。教宗的母亲米尔德里德于1990年因癌症去世。他的父亲，也叫路易，于1997年因结肠癌和心脏病去世。

尽管梵蒂冈内部对教宗的健康状况感到担忧，但教会中央行政机构的运作仍将继续。“我们并没有为此焦头烂额，”一位官员告诉CNN，“各部委（梵蒂冈的部门）的工作仍在继续，这些部门负责支持教宗的牧职。”教宗即使躺在病床上，也能继续治理教会。

熟悉教宗的人都说他渴望尽快恢复正常生活。艾丽丝·艾伦曾在2025年7月为撰写关于利奥十四世的书籍采访过教宗，她将目前的状况描述为“一场等待游戏”，但重要的是不要妄下结论。“他非常勤奋，意志坚定，如果可能的话，他会想尽快回到正轨，”她告诉CNN。

一位在美国军队服役的大主教呼吁允许天主教徒免于接受拟议的枪决。

艾伦表示，住院治疗可能会导致他“减少”一些预约和工作安排。她还指出，他上一次遭遇重大健康危机，是在他年轻时被派往秘鲁担任传教士期间，那次危机对他影响深远。1985年，利奥抵达秘鲁不久便感染了伤寒。艾伦说，那是一个转折点，因为康复后，他更加投入到在南美洲的工作中。

教宗若望保禄二世和方济各都展现了教宗的角色中包含着公众苦难的因素。而且，由于近几届教宗选举会议选出的教宗大多已年近七旬，健康问题也如影随形。“脆弱性值得特别关注，”良十四世在上周的家庭生活会议上发表讲话时说道，“家庭的经验对每个人都有启示，因为脆弱性是我们共同的人类境况，因此也与教会的生活息息相关。”

教宗现在也体会到了许多其他患有类似疾病的人所面临的那种脆弱和不确定性。