Pope cancels visit to Assisi. “Doctors advised against travel”

O Pope canceled a visit to Assisi, scheduled for October 27, by the guidance of his doctors, after surgery for lung cancer he underwent last week, today he informed the Vatican in a statement.

Chest X-ray confirmed “post-operative recovery” of Leo XVI, 71 years old, “is progressing very well”, according to an update published by the Vatican and signed by the doctor Luigi Carbone and by the surgeon Stefano Margaritora.

“ However, given the short time since the surgery, doctors advised against the helicopter trip scheduled for October 27, just in case”, mentioned the statement.

The Pope had a confirmed presence on the last day of the meeting “Peace without weapons”, held in Assisi (Central Italy) and organized by the Community of Saint Egidio. The event marks the 40th anniversary of the World Day of Prayer for Peace, convened by Saint John Paul II.

The Vatican statement said that the Pope will send a message expressing his closeness to “organizers, leaders and representatives of Christian denominations and other religions, as well as to the guests present” at the event.

The Pope reaffirmed his conviction that “dialogue in the ‘Spirit of Assisi’ and the search for words and gestures of peace are valuable resources in an era of conflict”.

Leo XVI was operated on October 13 for the removal of the lower lobe from the right lung due to a malignant pulmonary adenocarcinoma.

Subsequent examinations confirmed that “the disease was located” and that “no additional treatment is required,” their doctors said on Wednesday.

The surgeon Stefano Margaritora, who led the team responsible for the operation, had previously declared to Vatican News that he did not see “any clinical reason” so that the 11-day trip from Leo XVI to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru, scheduled for next month, would not take place.