NewzVATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Leo XIV was expected to be admitted to a Rome hospital Tuesday for the removal of a lung nodule, an operation that experts say will determine whether the lesion is malignant and if other treatment is needed.The 71-year-old American pontiff has offered a rare level of transparency about the first publicly disclosed major health problem of his 17-month papacy. He revealed the discovery of the small, localized nodule during his Sunday noon prayer and announced that he would have it removed.The Vatican said Leo would be admitted to the Gemelli hospital late Tuesday morning, but there was no immediate word on the timing of the operation itself. Dozens of well-wishers, including medical personnel, gathered at the entrance to the Gemelli hospital in anticipation of the pope’s arrival.The surgery, which is usually performed under general anesthesia, will require a weeklong hospital stay and the Vatican on Monday canceled all Leo’s audiences through Oct.
20.“These are things that can be treated very well, if the words he used reflect the clinical situation,” said Dr. Lorenzo Spaggiari, director of thoracic surgery at the European Institute of Oncology, or EIO, in Milan, who is not involved in the pope’s care but knows the team at Gemelli.A churchman who saw Leo on Monday, Tokyo Cardinal Kikuchi Tsutomu, said Leo told him he felt fine and decided to have the surgery immediately so that he wouldn't have to alter his upcoming travel plans to Latin America.But the decision clearly came as a surprise: While Gemelli has a specific papal apartment that past popes have used, complete with a private chapel on the 10th floor, Leo will actually be staying in a nearby room since the papal apartment is currently undergoing renovations, according to a person with knowledge of the plans, who asked for anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to speak publicly.Robotic technology could permit a biopsy before surgerySpaggiari said he expected the team at Gemelli would perform a biopsy to determine whether Leo has lung cancer followed by the removal of a section or lobe of the lung where the nodule is located.Both could be done using robotic techniques, and could be performed consecutively, under the same anesthesia, with different specialist teams, Spaggiari said.A sophisticated robotic bronchoscopy technology called ION allows a biopsy on nodules as small as 3… Leo has offered a rare level of transparency about the first publicly disclosed major health problem of his 17-month papacy.
The Vatican said Leo would be admitted to the Gemelli hospital late Tuesday morning, but there was no immediate word on the timing of the operation itself. The surgery, which is usually performed under general anesthesia, will require a weeklong hospital stay and the Vatican on Monday canceled all Leo’s audiences through Oct. “These are things that can be treated very well, if the words he used reflect the clinical situation,” said Dr.
Robotic technology could permit a biopsy before surgery Spaggiari said he expected the team at Gemelli would perform a biopsy to determine whether Leo has lung cancer followed by the removal of a section or lobe of the lung where the nodule is located. Both could be done using robotic techniques, and could be performed consecutively, under the same anesthesia, with different specialist teams, Spaggiari said. A sophisticated robotic bronchoscopy technology called ION allows a biopsy on nodules as small as 3 millimeters (1/10 inch) , Spaggiari said.
Both the Gemelli and the EIO have the technology, which has been available in Italy for just two years. Gemelli also has robotic surgical technology, allowing the operation to remove the nodule to proceed “using a minimally invasive technique,” he said. The technique involves the surgeon making four small incisions in the chest through which the instruments of the so-called da Vinci robot are inserted, he said.
The surgeon then controls the robotic arms looking at a screen providing high-definition, 3D views of the surgical site. “It’s a very well-established technology. This is something we have been doing for 20 years,” he said.
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