Pope Leo Has Lung Cancer. Pray for Him.

Tuesday's good news about Pope Leo XIV came with a hard word attached. The surgery was a success. The diagnosis is cancer.

Here is what the Vatican has said, as reported by Al Jazeera, CP24, NBC News stations and others. Pope Leo, the first American pope, underwent thoracic surgery on Tuesday, October 13, at Gemelli Hospital. Surgeons removed the lower lobe of his right lung. The Vatican said the operation, which reports put at about 90 minutes and performed with a video-assisted technique, was successful and had no complications. The aim was to remove all cancerous tissue.

Then came the second bulletin. Tests confirmed lung adenocarcinoma. The Vatican said the diagnosis had been suspected from tests before the operation and was confirmed during surgery. Earlier reports had described a lung nodule.

What we know, and what we don't

The Vatican's statement did not address further treatment. It said doctors are not currently speaking of chemotherapy or other therapies, pending the results of other tests. The pope's lymph nodes were also removed and tested to see whether the cancer had spread, and as of the reports available this morning there was no word on those results. The Vatican has cancelled all of his audiences through October 20 while he recovers. We did not find any statement about whether his planned November Latin America trip is affected, and we are not going to guess.

Outside doctors have been careful, and that is the right tone. Dr. Stephen Liu of Georgetown's Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center told Reuters, "While we have the diagnosis, we do not yet have the stage." He added, "If this is a small lung cancer with no lymph nodes involved, surgery itself is likely to be curative." Adenocarcinoma is the most common type of lung cancer, he said, and has the most favorable prognosis. Those are two big ifs and one general statistic, not a prognosis for this patient, and nobody outside the operating team can offer one yet.

The 71-year-old pontiff is the first pope born in the United States. That is why this story lands differently here than most Vatican news. Americans of many faiths are watching a countryman face a serious diagnosis while holding one of the most visible offices in the world.

The other side

There is a fair counterpoint to any commentary on a man's illness, and it is this: it is nobody's business but his, his doctors' and his flock's. Some will say a publication that covers politics has no place speculating about a health crisis. They have a point about speculation. We will not engage in it, and the sourcing above is limited to what the Vatican and the doctors have said. But a pope is not a private citizen. The Holy See itself published the diagnosis, and the transparency is to its credit.

The take

First, pray. That is not a throwaway line for a faith-friendly audience. The head of the world's largest Christian church is now a patient, and Americans of every denomination can wish him a full recovery without reservation.

Second, give the Vatican credit for plain speaking. The Holy See told the public the word "cancer" in the same bulletin cycle that reported the surgery's success. Institutions that bury bad news until it leaks could learn from that.

Third, be patient with the unknowns. The stage and the lymph node results will decide what comes next. Until the Vatican reports them, anyone offering a timeline for his return, a succession theory or a prediction about treatment is selling something. We are not.

For now the facts are modest and the right response is modest too. The surgery went as planned. The lobe was removed. The pope is recovering in Rome, his schedule is cleared through October 20, and a great many people are praying for him. So should we.