pe's recovery could determine whether Leo makes his weeklong apostolic visit to Peru.

 I want the pope to know that here in Peru, millions of us are praying for his speedy recovery,  Fujimori said Wednesday.

Leo was diagnosed with adenocarcinoma, a type of non-small cell lung cancer, after doctors examined the nodule they had removed from his right lung.

Non-small cell lung cancer accounts for 80% of all cases of the disease, according to the American Lung Association.

This type of cancer affects both smokers and nonsmokers, although Leo is not known to ever have been a smoker.

The initial lump was detected during a routine check, the Vatican has said. The leader of the world's 1.4 billion Catholics took the rare step of revealing the health issue - the first of his papacy - during his Sunday noon prayer last week.

Leo waved to crowds outside Rome's Gemelli Hospital as he entered Tuesday.

The procedure was led by Dr. Stefano Margaritora, Gemelli's chief thoracic surgeon, with medical staff reciting the rosary prayer in the hospital chapel as the operation began.

Pope Leo XIV underwent surgery to remove a lung nodule that confirmed a diagnosis of pulmonary adenocarcinoma, the Vatican said.