In March 2024, the entire United Kingdom and the royal watchers worldwide stopped for a moment when Catherine, the Princess of Wales, announced that she was having cancer treatment after having surgery on her abdomen earlier that year. This development, which rang out through the world's newspapers and radio and TV stations, gave an exceptionally rare look into the life of a future Queen Consort who had to deal with a very 'challenging' medical condition. This has, in turn, led to the resumption of talking about the already strained relations between the Prince of Wales and the Duke of Sussex, his younger brother.Speculations have been made as to whether her recovery could be a turning point during the difficult times for the monarchy.
In September 2024, Kensington Palace made it public that Catherine had finished the whole course of chemotherapy, and by the beginning of 2025, she was already in remission. The two later told that they had addressed the matter of her illness with their kids gradually while still providing reassurance to the little ones. Prince William, in his public statements, looked back on the time, calling it the worst year of his life, and pointing out how much suffering and stress occurred in private under the burden of royal obligation.
