What to Know About Pope Leo’s Lung Cancer Diagnosis
New York Times · LC · trust 63/100
The cancer has a high survival rate if caught in the early stages.
Listen · 4:02 min Share full article Pope Leo XIV was diagnosed with Lung adenocarcinoma, a common form of lung cancer that can be highly treatable when caught early. Credit... Remo Casilli/Reuters By Nina Agrawal Maggie Astor and Dani Blum
Lung adenocarcinoma, which Pope Leo XIV was diagnosed with on Tuesday , is a common form of lung cancer that can be highly treatable when caught early.
Survival rates for lung adenocarcinoma vary greatly depending on the stage of the cancer. The Vatican did not provide any information about the stage of the pope’s cancer. But the fact that the growth on his lung was described as a “localized nodule” and that the first treatment was surgery would suggest that he has early-stage cancer, said Dr. Daniel Boffa, the chief of thoracic surgery at the Yale School of Medicine.
Even within Stage 1, a patient’s exact prognosis can vary based on tumor size, pathology, the person’s overall health and the type of treatment they choose, said Dr. Jaclyn LoPiccolo, an attending physician and lung cancer researcher at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston. But five-year survival rates can be over 80 percent.
Lung adenocarcinoma most commonly occurs among adults 70 and older, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The pope is 71.
Lung cancer is typically found in people who are current or past smokers, but an estimated one in seven patients don’t have a smoking history , Dr. Boffa said. (Pope Leo is not known to be a smoker.) People who have not smoked can develop lung cancer because of exposure to secondhand smoke and radon, or certain genetic mutations. Some research has also tied lung cancer to environmental factors like air pollution.
Lung cancer is commonly found incidentally — when someone receives a CT scan for something else, like an injury or a check of the coronary arteries for calcium deposits — or through routine screening, though that is currently recommended only for people with a heavy smoking history.
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