remove

Vatican officials expect a one-week hospital recovery for the 71-year-old religious leader ahead of his scheduled Latin America tour.

Pope Leo XIV is to undergo surgery to remove a lung nodule, the Vatican has announced.

The 71-year-old leader of the Catholic Church will enter Rome’s Gemelli Hospital late on Tuesday morning for the procedure, which is expected to require about a week of inpatient recovery and has forced the cancellation of upcoming papal audiences.

During his weekly blessing in St Peter’s Square on Sunday, Leo told pilgrims that a small nodule was found on his left lung during a routine checkup and said it was “well-contained” and had been spotted early.

“The doctors believe it’s best to take action, so, following their advice, I’ve decided to have surgery to remove it,” he said during remarks delivered in Italian.

Later, the Vatican said a week of recovery time is expected after Leo’s surgery, and his audiences have been cancelled until October 20.

Spokespeople did not clarify whether the nodule is believed to be malignant.

The pope has no reported history of serious illness and is considered physically active, routinely swimming and playing tennis.

The upcoming surgery comes ahead of an official Latin America tour scheduled for November 6–17, with stops planned across Uruguay, Argentina, and Peru.

Whether the operation and subsequent recovery will force changes to the itinerary remains unclear, though the pontiff told reporters on Sunday that he intends to make the journey.

The late Pope Francis, Leo’s predecessor, died at age 88. Francis was hospitalised several times and grew frail in his later years. He did not usually announce his hospital visits in advance, sometimes sparking intense media speculation about his health.

CHLOE Ferry has opened up about going under the knife to remove her ‘loose skin’ after getting her BBL taken out.

The Geordie Shore star, 31, got her BBL (Brazilian bum lift) reversed in January 2025.

And now she’s gone under the knife again to deal with the aftermath of the BBL reversal and the loose skin she was left with in its place.

Taking to Instagram to share a selfie from her hospital bed, Chloe penned: “This is something I’ve found really difficult to open up about because it’s incredibly personal and private to me.

“I’ve gone back and forth about whether to share it, but I feel like if my experience can help even one person, then it’s worth being honest about.”

She then got candid, writing: “A year ago, I had my BBL removed, and honestly, I thought that would be the end of my journey with it. I thought I could finally move on and put it all behind me.

ferr-al

Chloe Ferry reveals feud with Geordie Shore co-star saying ‘we’re not friends’

VILE ABUSE

Chloe Ferry vows to call police as she exposes friend’s ‘threatening’ messages

“Unfortunately, that hasn’t been the case. I’m now left with quite a lot of loose skin after getting my BBL removed around that area, and after a lot of thought, I’ve made the difficult decision to have it surgically removed.”

Chloe added: “What I’ve learned through all of this is that surgery is never as simple as it can look from the outside. Especially when it comes to cosmetic surgery, corrective procedures or removals, there can be consequences you never imagine when you’re making that initial decision.

“And I really wish I could go back and speak to the 19-year-old version of myself.

“I wish I could tell her that she was already enough. That her body didn’t need fixing. That she didn’t need to change herself to feel beautiful, accepted or worthy.

“At 19, you don’t always understand how permanent some decisions can be. You don’t always think about what happens years later, when your body changes and you’re left dealing with consequences you never expected.”

Concluding her post, she added: “I’m not sharing this to judge anyone who has had, or is considering, cosmetic surgery. Everyone has their own reasons, experiences and journeys. I’m simply sharing mine because I wish someone had shared something like this with me when I was younger.

“If this reaches even one young girl who is thinking about changing her body and makes her pause for a moment and ask herself, “Do I really need to do this?” then sharing something this personal will be worth it.”

Chloe had previously spoken out about being “unhappy” with her bum for a long time.

The Sun revealed she was going under the knife for a BBL reversal last Januaury.

“Chloe’s first priority is sorting out her bum,” a source spilled to The Sun at the time.

“She has been unhappy with it for a long time and she is in surgery today. 

“She’s not sure yet if it will be fully removed or just reduced, but she just wants her old bum back,” they added.

Chloe previously shared how she had spent over £50,000 on cosmetic procedures.

Over the years, Chloe has gone under the knife several times, with some of the operations being for two nose jobs, liposuction and breast augmentation.

The NFL confirmed Monday that it has asked the Department of Homeland Security to remove a video featuring hard-hitting highlights of Hall of Fame safety Brian Dawkins from a social media post in reference to a report about a caravan of immigrants approaching the U.S. border.

On Sunday afternoon, the verified X account of the DHS reposted another account’s report of the purported caravan, along with the comment, “Our time has come,” and a 39-second clip of the former Philadelphia Eagles and Denver Broncos star delivering one bruising hit after another.

“The league requested DHS take down the video,” NFL spokesperson Brian McCarthy told The Times in an email.

Dawkins told ESPN in a text that he had “very respectfully not given permission” for the DHS to use his video.

About two hours after the initial post went up, the DHS responded in the comment section with a still photo of Dawkins and the caption, “The Border Is Closed.” As of early Monday afternoon, both posts remained intact.

The Times reached out to the DHS by email and asked if it had initially sought the NFL’s permission to use the content, if it planned on taking down the content as the league requested and why it chose to use Dawkins’ imagery with the posts.

The department sent a statement in response that appears to refer to the nine-time Pro Bowl selection’s nickname “Weapon X.”

“DHS is playing lockdown defense at the border. We will use every Weapon at our disposal, from A to X, to keep Americans safe,” the department wrote.

“The United States Border Patrol is actively tracking a migrant caravan which departed San Pedro Sula, Honduras on September 20, 2026. USBP is closely engaged with its international partners to monitor their movement and any additional developments. USBP reminds migrants that under the leadership of President Trump and Homeland Secretary [Markwayne] Mullin, the border has remained closed and secured for the last 16 months.

“Migrants considering making the dangerous journey to our country should also be aware that the days of ‘catch and release’ are over, and [former President] Biden’s disastrous open border policy has been SEALED SHUT. Anyone attempting to illegally enter the United States will be apprehended, prosecuted, and removed from the country.”

WASHINGTON — Vice President JD Vance and other Trump administration officials said Tuesday they plan to remove 760,000 Affordable Care Act enrollees from public healthcare exchanges, alleging that the individuals were fraudulently enrolled in the program, or simply do not exist.

Vance said the discovery and canceled subsidy payments for hundreds of thousands of people from the exchanges would result in $2.2 billion in cost savings.

“We’re actually making sure that the people receiving Obamacare subsidies are actually entitled to receive them,” Vance, who leads a government-wide task force to eliminate fraud, said in a public address at the White House, Tuesday. He was flanked by Dr. Mehmet Oz, the administrator for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, and other administration officials.

The Trump administration also announced a six-month suspension on new brokers who sign up enrollees for healthcare coverage, who officials say commit a disproportionate amount of the fraud they uncovered.

Tuesday’s announcement is the latest in an administration-wide initiative to address fraud around the country, including in federal healthcare programs, which officials say is needed to rein in runaway spending and protect taxpayers.

The announcement comes as inflation and rising healthcare costs pressure the Trump administration to come up with a plan to bring down costs for Americans heading into the midterms.

The price of ACA insurance has skyrocketed for many Americans during Trump’s second term, after Republicans opposed extending COVID-era subsidies that had helped offset the costs of health insurance for most enrollees during Biden’s term.

Premiums doubled or tripled for many enrollees, prompting millions to downgrade their plans or exit the program entirely after the Republican-led Congress allowed the subsidies to expire this year.

Roughly 19.2 million Americans are actively enrolled in ACA marketplace health plans as of early 2026, according to the HHS website.

The White House referred The Associated Press to the Vice President’s team for additional comment on bigger plans to address healthcare affordability.

The Wall Street Journal first reported the news of the Trump administration’s plan to remove ACA enrollees from public exchanges.

Hussein writes for the Associated Press. AP writer Michelle Price contributed to this report.