King Charles' hospital stay reminds world that UK ruler is still a cancer patient

King Charles III waved to well-wishers in central London on Friday as he headed for his country estate in western England a day after he was briefly hospitalized because of side effects from a scheduled cancer treatment.

Charles canceled planned engagements on Thursday afternoon and Friday on the advice of his doctors, Buckingham Palace said, without providing details about the “temporary side effects” that he experienced.

But the episode was a reminder that the king is 76 and continues to undergo treatment for an undisclosed form of cancer diagnosed more than a year ago.

That reality has slipped away from the collective consciousness since last spring, when Charles returned to public duties after stepping away for almost three months to focus on his initial treatment and recovery. In the intervening months, he has attended D-Day commemoration events in France, presided over the State Opening of Parliament and even embarked on a nine-day visit to Australia and Samoa.

The king went to the London Clinic on Thursday morning for a scheduled cancer treatment. The clinic is a private hospital in central London, where Charles has been receiving treatment since his diagnosis in February 2024.

The king is expected to press ahead with his work in the coming days, including a state visit to Italy scheduled for early April.

Palace officials have recognized that it’s better to release some information about the king’s health, rather than allow media speculation to fill the void when he’s forced to cancel scheduled events.

The decision to talk about the king’s health issues marked a departure from past palace protocols. For example, when Queen Elizabeth II began missing events toward the end of her life, royal officials repeatedly said that she was suffering from “mobility issues,” without providing further details. Her death certificate listed the cause as “old age.”

The public was unaware that Charles’ grandfather, King George VI, had lung cancer before his death in February 1952 at the age of 56. Some historians suggest that even the king wasn’t told about the gravity of his condition.



(Photo Yui Mok/PA via AP)