{
  "id": 13886485,
  "title": "The pope has a lung nodule. What does this mean? And what’s the risk of cancer?",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/12/the-pope-has-a-lung-nodule-what-does-this-mean-and-whats-the-risk-of",
  "topic": "health",
  "section": "Health & Medicine",
  "published": "2026-10-12T04:55:56.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Conversation AU",
    "slug": "the-conversation-au",
    "url": "https://theconversation.com/the-pope-has-a-lung-nodule-what-does-this-mean-and-whats-the-risk-of-cancer-294136"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Pope Leo is set to undergo surgery in the coming days to remove a lung nodule detected during a routine checkup. At 71 years old, the Pope described the growth as \"well contained\" and noted it was discovered early. Lung nodules are small growths in the lungs, no larger than 3 centimeters, often identified during chest imaging such as X-rays or CT scans. While most are benign, around 3.7-5.5% can signify early-stage lung cancer. Risk factors include age, smoking, family history of lung cancer, and exposure to asbestos. The risk of cancer after the removal depends on the type of cancer. In the general population, the chance of developing lung cancer per year is 55 cases per 100,000 people.",
  "summary": "The 71-year-old Pope said the growth in his lung was ‘well contained’ and spotted early.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}