Leo XIV: the first photos after his lung surgery, a convalescence still ongoing

The Vatican published on Friday 16 October the first photographs of Leo XIV since his lung surgery, performed on Tuesday at Gemelli Hospital in Rome. Two photographs show the 71-year-old pope celebrating a Mass, standing, in green chasuble and white cap. According to medical information relayed by the Holy See, his general condition improved, but his recovery continued in the hospital. [S1] [S2] [S3] [S4]

Mass with out-of-service caregivers

The four media depict the same scene and the same Vatican publication. Léon XIV official in front of an improvised altar, installed according to Watson in a room on the tenth floor of the establishment. His private secretary, Peruvian priest Edgard Rimaycuna, appears beside him on one of the clichés. These images document an activity of the pope during his hospitalization, not his return to the Vatican. [S1] [S2] [S3] [S4]

The celebration brought together medical and nursing personnel who were not on duty at that time, as well as members of the security forces, said the Holy See's press service. The pope thanked doctors, nurses and service workers for their work with fragile people and for the attention he has received since his admission. [S1] [S2] [S4]

An intervention announced by the Pope himself

Leon XIV had made public the need for this operation on Sunday, 11 October, at the end of the Angelus. According to Vatican News, he had explained that examinations had revealed a circumscribed pulmonary nodule, identified at a very early and well located stage. He had presented the intervention as a decision taken following the recommendations of his doctors. The Vatican then announced a post-operative hospitalization of about a week. [S5]

The operation took place on Tuesday. CNews reports, quoting the Vatican, that it involved the removal of the lower lobe of the right lung and that it went well. The photographic articles indicate that a cancer nodule has been removed. The pre-announcement described a localized nodule: it did not give this qualification as cancer in the text consulted. This information therefore corresponds to different times of the care communication. [S1] [S2] [S3] [S5]

Encouraging reviews, with no confirmed exit date

The blood tests and X-ray of the thorax conducted on Friday confirmed a "constant improvement in its general condition", according to the communiqué of the doctors transmitted by the Holy See and taken up by Watson and 20 Minutes. Respiratory physiotherapy continues. Doctors also indicate that convalescence allows the pope to perform his usual daily activities in autonomy. [S2] [S4]

These medical indications must be distinguished from the assessments made on its appearance. CNews presents the images as reassuring, while Watson describes a relaxed and fit pope. These descriptions do not constitute a medical prognosis. The information published indicates that recovery is under way; they do not set an exit date. According to 20 Minutes, the press service is based on the initial estimate of approximately one week of hospitalization. [S1] [S2] [S4]

Maintained Angelus and Support Messages

The Holy See announces that Leo XIV will celebrate the Sunday prayer of the Angelus, without specifying whether it will take place from the hospital or from the Vatican. For the faithful, the appointment is confirmed, but its place remains uncertain. The celebration of this Mass in Gemelli alone does not lead to a complete resumption of its public program. [S2] [S4]

20 Minutes also reports the distribution of letters and drawings addressed to the pope by young patients at the hospital. These testimonies provide a human complement to medical news. The common point of the proceedings, however, remains precise: the photographs make visible a stage of convalescence, while the information on its evolution and the exit continue to depend on the medical communications relayed by the Vatican. [S1] [S2] [S3] [S4]