King Charles has been undergoing cancer treatment since his diagnosis was revealed in early 2024. The monarch has spent the necessary time recovering, wisely opting not to undertake royal duties for months. Lately, though, he’s returned to serving the monarchy alongside his wife, to the joy of many fans.
Although Charles is doing much better, it’s important to remember that his treatment is still ongoing. Queen Camilla is reportedly doing her best to help her husband not hurry his way back to royal life, but reports suggest that the two are odds about the best strategy.
In less than two weeks, Charles and Camilla will embark on an eight-day journey to Australia and Samoa. The trip has become something of a cause for concern among experts and fans, but the Palace has made sure to arrange it to suit the King’s health status. However, one thing is going to be sacrificed during the long journey — and it concerns King Charles’ cancer treatment.
King Charles received his cancer diagnosis in early February. Now, nine months later, he’s still recovering, but thankfully the monarch has made a return to royal duty… at least to some extent.
The last few months haven’t been easy, but Charles has widely been lauded for the decision he made in the wake of his diagnosis.
Why King Charles decided to reveal his cancer diagnosis to the public
The monarch, who is not obligated to reveal any private matters to the public, made it clear that he wanted to to share his diagnosis with the world.
“His Majesty has chosen to share his diagnosis to prevent speculation and in the hope it may assist public understanding for all those around the world who are affected by cancer,” a statement on February 5 read.
In short, Charles’ decision to reveal his cancer diagnosis may have saved lives. As reported by the Associated Press, Cancer Research UK recorded a 33% increase in visits to its website as people searched for information regarding the signs and symptoms of cancer.
“I would like to express my most heartfelt thanks for the many messages of support and good wishes I have received in recent days,” Charles said in a statement some days after the first update on his health.
“As all those who have been affected by cancer will know, such kind thoughts are the greatest comfort and encouragement.”
The monarch added: “It is equally heartening to hear how sharing my own diagnosis has helped promote public understanding and shine a light on the work of all those organisations which support cancer patients and their families across the UK and wider world.”
“My lifelong admiration for their tireless care and dedication is all the greater as a result of my own personal experience.”
Queen Camilla was against sharing his diagnosis, family friend claims
Medical workers and royal fans praised Charles’s decision, but not everyone believed it to be a good idea. Queen Camilla initially didn’t want her husband to disclose that he had cancer at all, but Charles “overruled her.”
And though Charles and Camilla have made it through what can only be described as a very challenging time together, there have been reports of an ‘ongoing battle’ between them.
Despite his aforementioned diagnosis, Charles continues to allow for a packed schedule of royal engagements. A friend of Camilla’s claimed that she is “deeply unhappy” with her husband’s busy timetable and instead wants him to focus on recovering.
“Camilla would have been deeply unhappy that having only begun his holiday on Monday, he broke it off on Tuesday to do an incredibly intense engagement,” the friend told the Daily Beast.
“Of course, she understands it was very important, and there is no way she would try to tell Charles what to do, but it seems to be extraordinary timing. She wants him to slow down, she is afraid he is working too hard, and that’s before you even get to the Australia tour.”
Another friend said: “She has been trying to encourage him to slow down. Of course, he wants to keep cracking on, but she is afraid that doing too much could set him back.”
King Charles & Queen Camilla – Australia & Samoa state visits
While Camilla wants her husband to slow down, the couple are soon to embark on a long journey.
The king and queen will undertake an eight-day state visit to Australia and Samoa in less than two weeks, flying more than 10,000 miles from London to Sydney next Thursday. All told, they will be away for eleven days.
“Their Majesties, The King and Queen, will undertake an Autumn tour from Friday 18th to Saturday 26th October 2024,” a Palace spokesperson said. “This will include a royal visit to Australia, State Visit to the Independent State of Samoa and attendance at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) 2024. The program will be structured around celebrating the host countries as well as reflecting the King and Queen’s interests and work.”
“The King, who has this year been receiving treatment for cancer, will meet Professor Georgina Long and Professor Richard Scoyler, both Australians of the Year, and will hear about the work they do to help those affected by melanoma, one of Australia’s most common cancers.”
Considering the monarch isn’t a hundred percent fit, the tour will be slightly different.
According to royal expert Cameron Walker, Charles will face “very clear adaptations,” which will be a “big contrast” compared to when his late mother, Queen Elizabeth II, visited Australia.
King Charles to ‘pause’ cancer treatment during Australia & Samoa trip
“As we knew, doctors had given the King the green light to travel. It is going to be the first long-haul travel the King has done since his cancer diagnosis,” Walker told GB News. “But it’s very clear from the information I’ve received this afternoon that adaptions have been made. For example, New Zealand originally was on the agenda for the King and Queen to travel to – that has now been ruled out on doctor’s advice.”
The royal expert added: “Because he’s been mindful that he’s undergoing cancer treatments, he’s also going to be spending some time at an engagement to do with melanoma and cancer treatment.”
The Australia-Samoa trip will be more than just a test of King Charles’s health. The Daily Mail reports that Charles will pause his cancer treatment during the state visits. The newspaper suggests that he will continue with his ongoing cancer schedule right up until takeoff, but that his doctors “are happy for it to be briefly stopped while he is away.”
Moreover, Queen Camilla, praised for her dedication during this tough year, is set to have a pre-tour break with friends.
“The fortnight in the run up to the royal tour has been kept deliberately light for His Majesty. He will still be undertaking meetings, doing his paperwork and still come down for treatment,” a source told the Daily Mail.
“Australia is a big deal and he wants to be fighting fit. As soon as he returns he is also straight into a really intense programme all the way up to Christmas.”
Royal expert says cancer treatment pause is “good news”
The source added: “The late Queen would stay in Scotland into October and he’s decided to do the same. It’s a place of peace for him and that’s more imperative than usual this year because of what he has coming up. For a workaholic [like him] it’s the chance to have a small breather.”
The fact that Charles is able to briefly pause his cancer treatment can’t be seen as anything other than a great sign that he’s doing well. According to royal expert Jennie Bond, the king is bracing himself for “testing.”
“Charles is 75, he is not a young man by any means,” Bond told GB News. “He has been on the world scene for decades. His shoulders are broad and his mind is attuned to everything going on around the world. He is making a great job of it. I just hope he can continue to do so and get through this treatment.”
The former BBC royal correspondent continued: “He is set to travel to Australia with Camilla, that will be quite testing I should think. But he is back on the world scene. That is good news.”
The king will naturally have his doctors with him on the Australia-Samoa trip, but they won’t only be present due to his fight with cancer.
Now, Charles has flown abroad for official engagements and tours many times over the years. Some trips take longer than others, but besides his regular luggage, his doctor also brings something quite extraordinary in his bags: blood.
Why King Charles is traveling with bags of blood
In 2016, The Telegraph’s Gordon Rayner revealed that the late Queen Elizabeth II – like King Charles nowadays – traveled alongside a Royal Navy doctor. One of the doctor’s tasks was to research information about local hospitals.
“In countries where a reliable blood supply is questionable, the Queen and the Prince of Wales both travel with their own personal packs of blood following in their convoy wherever they go,” he added. “Their doctor is never more than a few paces away, carrying a bulky medical bag containing a mobile defibrillator and all manner of emergency medicine.”
Dickie Arbiter, former press secretary to Queen Elizabeth II and media manager for King Charles III and Princess Diana, made the same claim on Hello! Magazine’s A Right Royal podcast.
“You’ve got to make sure that you’re covered in every eventuality,” Arbiter said. “And the aircraft-carried blood as well. Blood, yes, for in the case there was a blood transfusion,” he said.
“There’s never really a guarantee that you’re going to get the right type of blood at your destination,” he added. “So you carry it.”
The sad reason why there is always an all-black outfit onboard
Royal expert Shannon Felton Spence, who traveled with Charles and Camilla, the Queen Consort, in 2015, told Fox that it “makes sense” to travel with blood. Moreover, the royals always have a black outfit with them.
“The late Queen Elizabeth II was caught totally off-guard when her father passed away while she was in Kenya,” Felton Spence said. “She didn’t have a black outfit to exit the plane in the U.K. Knowing that the world’s photographers would be on her, a lady’s maid had to run a black dress up the tarmac to her so she could change before she stepped out.”
She added: “But it’s not just if a member of the family were to pass away. It’s any major dignitary throughout the world. Given how unpredictable that can be and the lessons learned from 1952 with the queen, they always travel with one appropriate all-black outfit.”
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