Pope Leo XIV Starts South America Tour After Cancer Surgery

Pope Leo XIV arrived in Montevideo on Friday, beginning a 12-day tour of Uruguay, Argentina and Peru just three weeks after undergoing surgery for lung cancer. The 71-year-old pontiff appeared in good spirits after the 13-hour flight from Rome, telling reporters he felt “fairly good” and that he had never doubted the trip would go ahead.

Large crowds lined the streets of the Uruguayan capital as Leo made his way to Plaza Independencia for a formal welcome by President Yamandu Orsi and government officials. The Vatican estimated that 30,000 people turned out for his arrival and first public event.

Speaking in Spanish, the pope praised Uruguay’s “remarkable” transition to clean energy while also addressing the country’s mental health challenges, including the highest suicide rate in Latin America. Drawing on his own recent cancer treatment, he stressed that healthcare should be “accessible to all” and that the state must care for people from youth to old age. Without naming specific laws, he appeared to reference Uruguay’s decriminalised abortion and legalised assisted dying when he said people should be accompanied “until the natural end” of life.

Leo’s packed three-day itinerary in Uruguay includes a visit to a neighbourhood affected by gang violence, a mass in Paysandu and another in the city of Florida. Cardinal Daniel Sturla, archbishop of Montevideo, said interest in the visit extended far beyond the Catholic community, with tickets for the masses quickly selling out.

Doctors cleared the pope for travel after his 14-day convalescence period, and the Vatican said no extra medical measures were needed. The trip will conclude in Peru on 17 November, where Leo served for nearly two decades as a missionary and will revisit his former diocese of Chiclayo.