Pope Leo XIV meets cancer survivor Varvara Struk

Varvara Struk, a 13-year-old Ukrainian girl and cancer survivor, met with Pope Leo XIV as he was discharged from the Gemelli Policlinic in Rome. The Pope had been hospitalized for five days following surgery to remove a right lung adenocarcinoma.

During their meeting, Struk presented the Pope with a miniature felt figure of himself. She expressed her hope that the gift would protect him from illness, drawing on her own experience of overcoming a neck tumor. Struk, who previously met the Pope in St. Peter's Square in December 2025 prior to her own surgery, shared her wish for the Pope to win his battle against illness just as she did.