Kate Middleton’s cancer update broke protocol with hidden message, expert says

It was almost eight months ago that the Princess of Wales broke the shock news to the world that she had been diagnosed with cancer – and one acclaimed royal biographer says one part of her statement went against royal tradition

The Princess of Waleses’ appearance at Remembrance events has been a sign of her gradual return to duties.

It was almost eight months ago that she broke the shocking news to the world she had been diagnosed with cancer following major abdominal surgery at the start of the year in January. Since then she’s undergone a course of preventative chemotherapy, which she revealed came to an end in an emotional video.

In recent weeks, she has started to make a gradual return to royal duties, culminating in her key appearance at the Cenotaph on Remembrance Sunday. Kate’s initial cancer announcement back in March shocked many, especially after much social media speculation about her.

And according to acclaimed royal biographer Robert Hardman, her statement revealing her health issue had one small detail that “broke protocol”. Writing in an updated version of his book King Charles, New King, New Court, he explains how Kate recorded a special video message to reveal her diagnosis.

He says: “The Princess had been filmed by a cameraman from BBC Studios Events Productions, the same team which filmed the Coronation and the late Queen’s funeral. The words, however, were entirely the Princess’s own.

“Even the formal transcript issued by the Palace broke with protocol. It was attributed not to ‘HRH The Princess of Wales ‘, but to ‘Catherine, The Princess of Wales’, a tiny point to most people but a noteworthy one in an institution bound to a correct way of doing things.”

Kate’s appearances at the weekend were the first time she has carried out two consecutive days of public official engagements this year, with the princess attending the Festival of Remembrance at the Royal Albert Hall on Saturday evening.

Her high-profile appearance comes after the Prince of Wales candidly described how 2024 had been “brutal” and “probably been the hardest year in my life”, with both Kate and the King diagnosed with cancer.

On Sunday, Kate stood throughout, watching intently as King Charles and her husband William placed their poppy wreaths at the base of the Portland stone monument. She was seen joining in with the national anthem and singing alongside Sophie, the Duchess of Edinburgh, for a hymn as they held their song sheets.

On the princess’s coat were three red poppies, often rumoured to be in honour of her great-grandmother’s three brothers, who all lost their lives in the First World War. Her diamond and pearl drop earrings belonged to the late Queen, and she also wore her silver Queen’s Dragoon Guards brooch – in a nod to her role as the regiment’s Colonel-in-Chief – beneath her poppies.

The princess made her first ever appearance at the service as the Duchess of Cambridge 13 years ago, seven months after she married William, joining the royal family and becoming an HRH.