King Charles III, 75, has been diagnosed with cancer and will likely be avoiding public events after being advised by his doctors to reduce in-person contacts, Buckingham Palace announced Monday.
The announcement marks a striking departure from the past, when monarch’s ailments were often hidden from the general public, based on royal experts.
“During The King’s recent hospital procedure for benign prostate enlargement, a separate issue of concern was noted,” the palace said in an emailed statement. “Subsequent diagnostic tests have identified a type of cancer.”
The statement also didn’t specify what stage the cancer was found.
Individually, Buckingham Palace said Charles didn’t have prostate cancer.
The news comes every week after each Kate and King Charles were discharged from a non-public London clinic after medical procedures. The king underwent a “corrective procedure” for an enlarged prostate, while Kate, 42, had unspecified abdominal surgery on Jan. 17.
“His Majesty has today commenced a schedule of normal treatments, during which era he has been advised by doctors to postpone public-facing duties,” the statement added. Â
In line with the statement, the king desired to share his diagnosis partially to avoid speculation on his condition but in addition “within the hope it might assist public understanding for all those world wide who’re affected by cancer.”
Before becoming king, Charles served as patron to numerous cancer-related charities, and “on this capability, His Majesty has often spoken publicly in support of cancer patients, their family members and the wonderful health professionals who help take care of them,” based on Buckingham Palace.
No further details are being shared about his treatment or prognosis, a palace spokesperson said, however the king returned to London on Monday to start out-patient care.
Sarah Gristwood, royal biographer and historian, said it was “striking” that the diagnosis was announced in any respect given the royal family’s history of attempting to “keep any sign of extraordinary human fallibility behind closed doors.”
“When Charles’ grandfather, George VI, was very gravely in poor health, the severity of his condition was kept not only from the general public but from the patient himself,” Gristwood said of King George, who died in 1952. “Those were the attitudes of the time. Happily, things have now modified.”
Charles ascended the throne last May in a coronation ceremony held months after the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II. Elizabeth reigned until her death on the age of 96 in September 2022. She was Britain’s longest-reigning monarch, with 70 years on the throne.
Kate continues to be in recovery, but her husband, William, Prince of Wales, is about to return to his royal duties by attending the London’s Air Ambulance Charity Gala Dinner on Wednesday.
Kensington Palace previously said the Princess of Wales is unlikely to return to her royal duties before Easter, March 31. There was no date specified for the king’s return to duties.
Buckingham Palace noted that most of the king’s planned engagements may have to be postponed or canceled, apologizing prematurely to anyone inconvenienced consequently. Charles’ wife, Queen Camilla, will proceed along with her full public duties as he undergoes treatment.
Buckingham Palace has also emphasized there will likely be no counsellors of state appointed, an indication that the king will proceed to perform his duties, said Craig Prescott, who teaches law at Royal Holloway, University of London, and focuses on the constitutional side of the monarchy.
“If the king is unavailable attributable to illness or is traveling overseas, then counsellors of state will be appointed to fill in for the king, and undertake the formal, constitutional functions of the monarch: things like granting the royal assent to laws, and undergo his red boxes,” Prescott said.
A source near the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan, told NBC News that Harry spoke to his father concerning the diagnosis.
“He will likely be traveling to the U.K. to see His Majesty in the approaching days,” the source said.
Harry stepped down from his role as a senior member of the royal family in 2020 and has since taken up residence in California along with his wife and two children. He has visited Britain sparingly in recent times, expressing concerns over the shortage of security for his family and amid reports of a widening rift along with his father and brother William.
He was in attendance for each his grandmother’s funeral and his father’s coronation.Â
