After lung surgery, the Pope has begun his post-operative recovery: Leone got out of bed, walked around the room, ate both breakfast and lunch, and began respiratory physiotherapy. He also concelebrated Mass in a specially equipped room on the tenth floor of the hospital. Above all, he is in "good spirits," as reported by the director of the Vatican press office, Matteo Bruni. Everything, therefore, is as expected from the doctors: Dr. Luigi Carbone and Professor Stefano Margaritora, in today's bulletin, report that, following the results of the blood tests and chest X-ray scheduled after the surgery, "they confirm a normal post-operative recovery: the values are within normal limits for the type of surgery performed."

For now, the expectation remains that he will be hospitalized for a week, starting from his admission, which was Tuesday. So far, so certain. But Leo XIV's future agenda remains a major question mark, as much will depend on the histological examination, the results of which will take a few days to be available. The spotlight remains on his trip to South America, from November 6 to 17. A veritable tour de force spanning Uruguay, Argentina, and Peru: 31,000 kilometers, including travel by plane and helicopter alone, plus car travel in the cities he is scheduled to visit. Fifteen stops are scheduled, including Cuzco, in the Peruvian Andes, at an altitude of 3,400 meters. Different climates from one country to the next, and even a trip to the Amazon rainforest. Not exactly a walk in the park after yesterday's speech. "We have heard the Pope's words, his intention and desire to go. Then we'll see," spokesman Bruni limited himself to saying, indirectly recalling the last Angelus, the same one where the intervention was announced, where Leone also spoke about the trip to Peru.

Little else has been revealed about the Pope's day. His aides are trying to protect his privacy, and the press office has not confirmed whether the Pope met with anyone, including his closest collaborators in the Curia. However, Leo decided to pass on reassuring information to his loved ones through his secretaries. "I received a message from his right-hand man: he had just left the operating room, was awake, felt well, and was in no pain," said the Pope's brother, Louis Prevost, who lives in Florida and is also undergoing cancer treatment. Pope Leo is "very serene," wrote his personal secretary, Monsignor Edgar Rimaycuna, in a message sent to Father Carlos Samamé, parish priest of San Juan María Vianney in Chiclayo, Peru.

And even from the tenth floor, despite maintaining the utmost secrecy, confirmation is coming of the Pope's serene state, the same he demonstrated on Tuesday morning upon entering the hospital. According to reports, the Pope is inquiring, asking the doctors for every detail, but at the same time following all the medical team's instructions and suggestions, confirming his trust in the professionals who, in recent weeks, after three important medical tests—a robotic bronchoscopy with biopsy, a chest CT scan with contrast, and a PET scan—had indicated to the Pope the necessity, and perhaps even the urgency, of this lung surgery. Today, the Amoris Laetitia summit concludes in the Vatican, for which Leone had summoned the world's bishops to Rome. "As you know," Leone wrote in a message to them, "I have not been able to be with you these days. I thank you from the bottom of my heart for your prayers and for the work you have done together."

(Unioneonline)

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