Kate Middleton has made an emotional visit to the Royal Marsden Hospital in London to personally thank staff who took care of her during her cancer treatment last year.
Dressed in a long brown checkered coat atop a maxi burgundy dress, the Princess of Wales, 43, spoke to doctors, nurses and other patients at the hospital Tuesday.
The outing marked her first major solo engagement in more than a year.
“I was just saying, coming in the front entrance here, having made so many quiet, private visits, actually it’s quite nice,” the mom of three was heard saying upon arrival.
The beloved royal then sat down with a woman who was undergoing chemotherapy as she asked her, “When did you first start treatment? Oh, today? How are you finding it?”
It had not been previously disclosed that the princess underwent cancer treatment at the Royal Marsden — located less than a 10-minute drive away from Kensington Palace.
“The princess wanted to make the journey to both show her gratitude to the incredible team, but also highlight the world leading care and treatment the Marsden provides,” a Kensington Palace spokesperson told BBC News.
During the outing, it was announced that Middleton had been appointed the royal patron on The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, joining her husband Prince William.
The title takes after William’s late mother, Princess Diana, who once held the patronage before her untimely death in 1997.
While Middleton underwent cancer treatment at the Royal Marsden hospital, she was initially admitted into the London Clinic in Jan. 2024 for a planned abdominal surgery.
However, after her stint under the watchful eye of doctors and nurses, it emerged that a staffer had allegedly breached her medical records, prompting an official investigation to take place.
It comes after it emerged that Princess Catherine will ease into 2025 by taking on a fraction of the public-facing duties that she would typically have on her calendar.
Sources told the Daily Mail that the mom of three “simply won’t be going back to work in the same way as before” her cancer diagnosis, which she revealed to the world in March 2024.
Currently, the princess’ diary does not include any full-scale foreign tours, and it will be a while before she returns to the royal fold in full — given that her cancer recovery remains on track.
