Crown Princess Mette-Marit was diagnosed with pulmonary fibrosis in 2018, and her husband, Crown Prince Haakon, issued an update on his wife’s health on May 26. Speaking to members of the media after presenting the Abel Prize mathematics award in Oslo, the future King said he’s “worried” about Mette-Marit’s worsening condition.
“The Crown Princess is seriously ill, and I think she has gotten a bit worse lately,” Crown Prince Haakon shared, adding, “So I am worried about her health.”
Pulmonary fibrosis is an incurable condition that results in scarred lung tissue and difficulty breathing. Mette-Marit wore a nasal cannula for the first time in public on April 10, and the crown prince said that she now relies on it daily. “She uses oxygen in her everyday life, and that helps a bit,” Crown Prince Haakon said.
Due to the disease, Mette-Marit has pulled back from her regular duties and is now making occasional appearances with the Norwegian royal family.
In December, the crown princess announced that she would need a lung transplant. Speaking of the surgery’s timing, Crown Prince Haakon said it was “up to the doctors” and “they’re the ones who decide when it should happen, when it’s right.” However, he added, “But I think she's gotten a lot worse lately, unfortunately.”
Speaking to Norwegian broadcaster NRK in their Year with the Royal Family program, Mette-Marit opened up about her worsening condition.
“I have always hoped that we would be able to keep the disease in check with medication, and the development has actually been quite slow up until now,” she said. “Whereas now the development has been faster than both I and the doctors had hoped for.”
