Prince William and Princess Kate Middleton have been “processing” the news of her cancer diagnosis for the past few weeks.
“They wanted to wait to tell the world the news until their children were off school for the Easter break so they could have time to process the news before the whole world was talking about [it],” a source exclusively told Us Weekly about William and Kate’s decision.
Kate, 42, who shares kids Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, 8, and Prince Louis, 5 with William, 41, confirmed her cancer battle on Friday, March 22, after months of speculation.
“In January, I underwent major abdominal surgery in London, and at the time, it was thought that my condition was noncancerous,” she said in a video posted via social media. “However, tests after the operation found cancer had been present.”
Kate called the news a “huge shock,” adding that she and William aim to “manage this privately for the sake” of their family.
“As you can imagine, this has taken time. It has taken me time to recover from major surgery in order to start my treatment,” she continued. “But, most importantly, it has taken us time to explain everything to George, Charlotte and Louis in a way that is appropriate for them, and to reassure them that I am going to be OK.”
The Princess of Wales originally addressed her health when Kensington Palace revealed in January that she underwent a “planned” procedure and would be postponing royal appearances for several months.
Kate subsequently remained out of the spotlight, with her last public appearance being in December 2023 when she joined members of the royal family for their annual walk to Christmas Day church service in Sandringham.
King Charles III was simultaneously hospitalized for a prostate treatment and was diagnosed with cancer less than one month later. While Charles continued to make rare public appearances, Kate remained out of the public eye.
Kate was photographed a handful of times since her surgery. She was first seen on March 4 in the passenger’s seat of a vehicle driven by her mother, Carole Middleton. Kate was also spotted in a car with William on March 11 and at Windsor Farm Shop on Saturday, March 16, according to a video obtained by TMZ.
William, meanwhile, took a brief break before returning to his royal duties. He previously sparked concern last month when he didn’t attend a service of Thanksgiving at St. George’s Chapel honoring his godfather King Constantine of Greece, canceling his appearance for undisclosed “personal reasons.”
In response to the online rumors about Kate’s disappearance, her rep released a public statement shutting down conspiracy theories, telling Us in that same month, “Kensington Palace made it clear in January the timelines of the princess’ recovery and we’d only be providing significant updates. That guidance stands.”
