Pope Leo to enter hospital on Tuesday for surgery on lung nodule

By Joshua McElwee VATICAN CITY, Oct 13 (Reuters) Pope Leo was due to be hospitalised in Rome on Tuesday ahead of surgery to remove a small growth on one of his ​lungs, in the first major health issue of his ‌17-month tenure. Leo, 71, said on Sunday that a small nodule had been found on a check-up, was well-contained and had been spotted early. He was expected to leave the Vatican for Rome s Gemelli hospital late morning, the Vatican press office said, without ‌specifying ​when the actual operation would take place. Leo, elected ⁠by the world s cardinals ⁠in May 2025, is relatively young for a Church leader. He enjoys sports, including tennis, and is not known to be a smoker or to have had health issues previously. The Vatican has said ​his recovery is expected to take about a week. All his public events have been cancelled until October 20. A nodule on ⁠the lung is a small, localised lesion ⁠that can be benign. The American Thoracic Society says ​fewer than 5% of lung nodules overa