VATICAN CITY — Pope Leo XIV will not need chemotherapy, immunotherapy or any other follow-up treatment after last week's lung cancer surgery, the Vatican announced Wednesday, delivering the clearest sign yet that the 71-year-old pontiff's recovery is on track.

Final laboratory testing on the tissue removed during the October 13 operation confirmed the tumor was lung adenocarcinoma — the most common form of lung cancer — but found it had not spread beyond what surgeons already removed. A follow-up oncology review concluded no additional therapy is required, according to the Vatican's statement, closing the loop on a question that had hung over the pope's health since his diagnosis was first made public.

The roughly 90-minute surgery removed the lower lobe of Leo's right lung at a Rome hospital. The Vatican called the operation successful and free of complications at the time, and doctors said the pope was walking and eating normally within days, beginning respiratory physiotherapy as part of his recovery.

NO FURTHER TREATMENT IS NECESSARY.

Back on His Feet — and Back on the Calendar

Dr. Stefano Margaritora, one of the surgeons overseeing Leo's recovery, told Vatican News over the weekend that "there are no clinical reasons" the pope's planned November 6-17 trip to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru should not go ahead as scheduled, and that the pontiff should be fully recovered from the surgery itself "in another 10 days or so." Leo was discharged from the hospital after a four-day stay and told well-wishers Sunday that he intended to gradually resume his full schedule of audiences and travel.

Leo, the first American-born pope, was elected in 2025 and has faced an unusually public health scare early in his papacy. Vatican officials have been more forthcoming with medical details than past pontificates typically were, releasing specifics about the tumor's size, the surgical approach and now the pathology results — a transparency that Vatican watchers say reflects Leo's own preference for directness with the public.

News of the clean test results was met with relief among Catholics worldwide, many of whom had offered prayers for Leo's recovery since his diagnosis became public earlier this month. The pope has not commented publicly on his own prognosis, but aides say he has continued handling paperwork and brief meetings from his residence throughout the hospital stay and recovery period.

What's Next

Leo is expected to make his first public appearance since the surgery in the coming days, with officials saying he will ease back into audiences before his South American trip next month. The Vatican has not said whether he will undergo periodic cancer screenings going forward, a standard practice for lung cancer patients even after a clean pathology report.