When Catherine, Princess of Wales, shared her cancer diagnosis back in March 2024, the world held its breath. The royal family is known for its stiff upper lip and carefully controlled narratives, so Kate’s message was very unusual in its vulnerability. She wasn’t just informing the public about the state of her health—she was publicly sharing one of the most painful and uncertain chapters of her life. Now, over a year later, her latest update demonstrates that she is not yet finished rewriting the royal rulebook.
In her most recent appearance at Colchester Hospital, Kate did something that felt almost revolutionary for a royal: she was honest. There was no glossy-magazine rhetoric about overcoming cancer, rejoicing in victory, and moving forward. She actually shared her real and complicated thoughts on recovery and how it feels to deal with all of this.
“Treatment’s done, then it’s like, ‘I can crack on, get back to normal,’ but actually, the phase afterwards is really, really difficult,” she said, frankly. “It’s a rollercoaster.”
Yes, the Princess of Wales is officially in remission. And yes, she looked radiant at Trooping the Colour and Order of the Garter just a few weeks ago. But behind those polished public appearances and perfect posture is a woman still deep in the thick of recovery—a process that, by her own admission, is far from over.
The Reality of “Afterwards”
Kate’s choice of words, specifically calling it a “roller coaster”, perfectly captures what many cancer survivors experience once the treatments end and the spotlight dims. As she explained, the expectation is that once chemo is over, life resumes. But the reality is way more difficult and complicated than you expect. Many experience emotional whiplash, lingering fatigue from the treatment, and then there’s also the mental toll of living with uncertainty.
This is something she wanted to shine a light on, not just for herself, but for the millions going through it silently. Most public figures don’t talk about the “after.” And certainly not in front of cameras, taking off gardening gloves to work with her bare hands, planting a rose named after them. (Yes, that happened. More on that in a sec.)
Kate’s moment of vulnerability wasn’t some off-the-cuff comment. It was strategic honesty, a conscious effort to shape the conversation around cancer recovery and challenge the illusion that “remission” equals “restored.”
