As King Charles and Kate Middleton are undergoing cancer treatment – which all began in January when King Charles first received his diagnosis and Kate underwent abdominal surgery – other royal family members have had to step up. Prince William and Queen Camilla have taken on a massive responsibility regarding engagements, and the schedule has changed.

Prince William and Queen Camilla have been praised for their work ethic, considering the small number of working royals in the last few months, but it has also taken its toll.

Kate Middleton and Queen Camilla have much in common. They are both married into the royal family and, at one point or another, the two have had to deal with a lot of scrutiny from the press and the public. In Kate’s case, that happened just weeks ago, as her Mother’s Day picture turned out to have been manipulated. However, even though it has been a challenging period, the Princess of Wales has also gotten a lot of support, not least from Queen Camilla – who’s shown her support beautifully.

The royal family is going through a really rough time. King Charles has been battling cancer since January, and last week, Kate Middleton shared her cancer diagnosis to the world.

The Princess of Wales underwent abdominal surgery in January, and up until last week, no one knew what her exact medical condition was. Speculations about her health and her marriage to Prince William have been ongoing for months. But on Friday, as Kate released the emotional video through the Prince and Princess of Wales’ social media pages, it shut down conspiracy theorists and the many celebrities that had pretty much mocked her online.

I wanted to take this opportunity to say thank you, personally, for all the wonderful messages of support and for your understanding whilst I have been recovering from surgery.

It has been an incredibly tough couple of months for our entire family, but I’ve had a fantastic medical team who have taken great care of me, for which I am so grateful.

In January, I underwent major abdominal surgery in London and at the time, it was thought that my condition was non-cancerous. The surgery was successful. However, tests after the operation found cancer had been present. My medical team, therefore, advised that I should undergo a course of preventative chemotherapy, and I am now in the early stages of that treatment.

This, of course, came as a huge shock, and William and I have been doing everything we can to process and manage this privately for the sake of our young family.

As you can imagine, this has taken time. It has taken me time to recover from major surgery in order to start my treatment. But, most importantly, it has taken us time to explain everything to George, Charlotte, and Louis in a way that is appropriate for them and to reassure them that I am going to be ok.

As I have said to them; I am well and getting stronger every day by focusing on the things that will help me heal; in my mind, body, and spirits.

Having William by my side is a great source of comfort and reassurance, too. As is the love, support, and kindness that has been shown by so many of you. It means so much to us both.

We hope that you will understand that, as a family, we now need some time, space, and privacy while I complete my treatment. My work has always brought me a deep sense of joy, and I look forward to being back when I am able, but for now, I must focus on making a full recovery.

At this time, I am also thinking of all those whose lives have been affected by cancer. For everyone facing this disease, in whatever form, please do not lose faith or hope. You are not alone.

“Please do not lose faith or hope”
When Kate Middleton went into surgery, Prince William stepped up and took on a lot of responsibility. Not only has he helped Queen Camilla with royal duties while the king and princess recover, but he also cares for the couple’s three children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis.

The future king is undoubtedly a hands-on dad, doing the school runs back and forth and helping around the house more significantly.

Like Prince William, Queen Camilla has received significant praise in recent months. She has had a very rocky time within the royal sphere, as her early affair with King Charles made her very unpopular among the British public and in the press. However, the tides have turned.

Finnbarr Webster – WPA Pool / Getty Images
Camilla is becoming increasingly popular, and many have praised her for her commitment, especially for handling her royal duties while King Charles is undergoing cancer treatments.

Queen Camilla praised for her commitment during King Charles’ cancer treatments
As late as this week, royal expert Angela Levin appeared on GB News, saying that Queen Camilla is “holding the royal family up.”

“I mean, to wait till you’re 73 is a long time before you can take the crown. I think obviously, at his age, it’s very difficult, but he’s very determined, and he’s only really just started to be king,” Levin said. “Supporting him very much, absolutely by his side, is Queen Camilla, who is going to all the engagements that they would have gone to together on her own.”

“And so that way he will feel it’s still moving, it’s still running, and they can discuss it and talk about it. And I think that’s marvelous. I mean, she is holding the Royal Family up and being strong. If you imagine 30 years ago, people were saying the whole Royal Family would absolutely disintegrate, and she would be of no use.”

Levin added that Camilla has revealed she doesn’t like the spotlight. However, she’s become very “accessible” and makes people laugh when meeting members of the public.

“To support her husband. She understands him very well because they’ve been together for over 50 years, before they even got married. it’s a long time and they make each other laugh,” Angela Levin added while appearing on GB News.

Chris Jackson/Getty Images
“They have the same sense of humor, they understand each other, and if you see them when they’re out, they move together. It’s very tandem.”

Kate Middleton was scrutinized by the media before marrying Prince William
As mentioned, Queen Camilla had a tough time being accepted by the press and public when she joined the royal family. The same went for Kate Middleton, at least from the media.

Despite coming from a middle-class background, Kate was labeled “a commoner.”

Before the couple announced their engagement in 2010, the now-princess was nicknamed “Waity Katie” and “Lazy Katie.” According to Buckingham Palace officials, this was a reference to the fact that Middleton had recently quit her job to “prepare for her future life.”

As the years went by, Kate Middleton became increasingly popular. Today, the Princess of Wales is the most popular royal family member, and as late as March, an IPSOS poll showed that Kate is the nation’s favorite royal, chosen by 38%, just ahead of her husband, Prince William, with 36%.

Following her abdominal surgery in January, royal fans worldwide were worried about her health status. Still, as she posted a picture of her and her children on Mother’s Day, many could finally relax. However, as we all know today, things escalated in the complete opposite way.

As the picture was proven to have been badly edited and manipulated, Kate Middleton had to publicly apologize for posting it herself. We don’t know exactly how much damage it did to her popularity among the public, but some argue it surely did.

Toby Melville – WPA Pool/Getty Images
Despite the feud with Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, in which Kate Middleton’s public image was badly hurt following the revelations the Duke and Duchess of Sussex made, the princess hasn’t been through a media scrutiny period since she became officially royal.

Queen Camilla provides Kate Middleton with support through public scrutiny
The cancer diagnosis announcement video, of course, showed that there was a reason behind her silence. However, arguments have been raised that the fact that she put out a manipulated picture of herself and her children was bad enough.

As Kate Middleton became the subject of much scrutiny after the Mother’s Day picture, Camilla became a crucial support source for the Princess of Wales.

In an interview with Today, The Telegraph’s associate editor, Camilla Tominey, claimed that the queen “has been trying to help [Catherine] through the media storm aspect in all of this.”

Tominey said, “I think before [Catherine] made the announcement because she was having to cope with the fallout of everything that was said about the Mother’s Day photo and everything else, I think Camilla lent some support.”

“Because let’s be honest, [Camilla] knows what it’s like to have a difficult press. She knows what it’s like to shepherd children through a media storm,” she added.

If there is one person in the royal family who knows what it’s like to be scrutinized by both the media and the public, it’s Queen Camilla.

In 1994, then-Prince Charles revealed that he had been unfaithful to Diana. It was the first time Charles had confirmed the rumors, but his mistress’ identity wasn’t revealed.

Tim Graham Photo Library via Getty Images
However, later the same month, Jonathan Dimbelby released an authorized biography about Charles, confirming the person he had been having an affair with was Camilla.

Queen Camilla was afraid of leaving her house after her affair with Charles was made public
Exactly how affected the now-queen was by the public disclosure of her affair with Charles hadn’t been known. But in a 2023 interview with OK Magazine, royal expert Angela Levin, author of Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall: A Royal Survivor, revealed that Camilla had to endure “torrents” of mistreatment from the public.

In fact, she was even afraid of leaving her house to go shopping.

“It was very difficult for her, as she was portrayed as the most wicked woman in the world. She was constantly called nasty names like ‘rottweiler,’ and it must have come as a huge shock that people were so vile about her,” Levin said.

Levin went on, “I don’t think Charles realized how awful it was for her. He was often away on engagements and working hard for the country and Commonwealth, and at the time, Camilla didn’t have protection officers because she wasn’t part of the Royal Family. But when Charles finally realized, he did get protection for her, which he paid for himself.”

Camilla became increasingly popular among the public as the years went by. Even so, Angela Levin suspects she “must still bear the scars of it all.”

What do you think of Queen Camilla and her work as a senior royal? Please share this article to give your opinion – and to wish King Charles and Kate MIddleton the best in their cancer treatments.

If you enjoy reading about the royal family, perhaps you’d be interested in the story below.