King Charles is "so proud" of Catherine, Princess of Wales for having the "courage" to share her cancer diagnosis.
The 42-year-old royal - who is married to Prince William and has Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, eight, and five-year-old Prince Louis with him - has been absent from public duties since January and announced on Friday (22.03.24) evening that she is battling a form of the disease.
Now, Buckingham Palace has spoken out on behalf of King Charles - who is currently undergoing treatment for an undisclosed form of the disease himself - and noted that the monarch has been in "close contact" with his "beloved" daughter-in-law amid their battles with the disease.
In a statement, Buckingham Palace said: "His Majesty is 'so proud of Catherine for her courage in speaking as she did'.
"Following their time in hospital together, HM has 'remained in the closest contact with his beloved daughter-in-law throughout the past weeks.'
"Both Their Majesties 'will continue to offer their love and support to the whole family through this difficult time'."
Catherine told viewers in a televised public address that the news had come as a "shock" to both her and her family but admitted it had taken time to explain things to their children.
She said: "I wanted to take this opportunity to say thank you personally, for all the wonderful messages of support and for your understanding whilst I've been recovering from surgery. It has been an incredibly tough couple of months for our entire family. But I've had a fantastic medical team who've taken great care of me for which I'm so grateful.
"In January, I underwent major abdominal surgery in London. And at the time, it was thought that my condition was non-cancerous.
"The surgery was successful. However, tests after the operation on cancer had been present.
"This of course, came as a huge shock. And Wiliam and I have been doing everything we can to process and manage this privately for the sake of our young family.
"As you can imagine, this has taken time, it has taken me time to recover for major surgery in order to start my treatment. It has taken us time to explain everything to George, Charlotte and Louis in a way that's appropriate for them, and to reassure them that I'm going to be okay. As I've said to them, I am well. I'm getting stronger every day by focusing on the things that will help me heal in my mind, body and spirits."
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