In her first solo engagement in a year, Princess Kate made a surprise visit to the Royal Marsden Hospital in West London – where she received her own cancer treatment.
Kate also announced in a personal message on social media after her emotional visit that she was officially in “remission” from cancer, and thanked the staff at the hospital for “looking after me so very well” during her treatment in the moving statement.
Her time meeting with patients and staff at the Royal Marsden Hospital saw the future Queen candidly open up about many aspects of her own cancer journey, including one incredibly poignant moment when her chemotherapy port was to be removed – which she admitted surprisingly left her with some mixed feelings.
Kate was chatting to patient Katherine Field, 45, who was undergoing chemotherapy at the time and was wearing a cold cap during the chat – these are used to try and prevent hair loss during the treatment.
Kate said to Katherine whilst gesturing to her arm and chest, that she had become almost “attached” to her own chemotherapy port and said joked that she had been reluctant to have it removed. “I got so attached to it,” Kate said, adding that she “hesitated when finally told ‘you can have it taken out’ now,” by her doctors.
Chemotherapy ports are a mechanism through which the medicine is delivered to patients, and sit beneath the skin, allowing them to wash, swim and do other activities more freely – it also minimises the amount of needles that are directly injected into a patient’s skin, and can help reduce the time they have to spend as in-patients – per the NHS.
Mixed feelings were something of a theme throughout the emotional visit, which saw Kate enter through the front doors for the first time, rather than the private entrances she made during her treatment – and coming in the main entrance was something she said was “quite nice” to experience in contrast.
Kate also opened up about the “long-term side effects” of her treatment that she is struggling with whilst chatting with staff, saying “daily tasks, but that’s still like a real challenge. And talking… the words totally disappear”.
The emotional day saw Kate also have a tearful chat with Tina Amadou, whose 19-year-old daughter is currently in the ICU, as Tina opened up to the future Queen she started crying, to which Kate replied “I wish I could do more. It will get better. There is light at the end of the tunnel.”
It was also announced that Kate and William will be Joint Patrons of the Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, a position William has held since 2007, and his mother the late Princess Diana previously held.
“It is a relief to now be in remission and I remain focussed on recovery. As anyone who has experienced a cancer diagnosis will know, it takes time to adjust to a new normal. I am however looking forward to a fulfilling year ahead. There is much to look forward to. Thank you to everyone for your continued support,” Kate said in the statement she released after the moving day.
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