King Charles is continuing his royal duties while also still undergoing cancer treatment, that much has been made clear. It was reported late last year that the monarch, who received his cancer diagnosis a year ago, would continue with his treatment into 2025.
With plans for a new state visit abroad having been laid out, it’s perhaps offered an indication that Charles’ treatment is going well. However, not everyone is convinced that things are going to get easier, with one expert claiming that the Palace faces tough times ahead.
King Charles has been through plenty in the last year, and as he grows older, so to do his friends and family members. He sadly lost his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, two years ago, and last year, his longtime friend Ian Farquhar tragically died after an accident in his home. Now, tragedy has struck again as King Charles grieves a person close to his heart.
Charles’ reign has had a rocky start. The monarch first had to put a lot of energy into his son, Prince Harry, and his wife, Meghan Markle, after all the accusations and claims they made about the Royal Family, before last year receiving the shocking news that he has cancer.
Over the course of the past year, Charles has undergone cancer treatment. And while he was supposedly well enough to pause his treatment for the Australia & Samoa state visit he and Camilla undertook, he still hasn’t fully recovered.
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Very early on, King Charles made the decision to reveal that he had cancer, even though it was reported that Camilla was against him disclosing his diagnosis. The fact that he did had a significant impact in the UK, with the number of people visiting websites for testing themselves skyrocketing.
Charles had reportedly hoped it could help others if he disclosed his cancer diagnosis – and it appears as though he definitely difference. A week after the monarch broke the news, he then released his own personal message to the country.
“I would like to express my most heartfelt thanks for the many messages of support and good wishes I have received in recent days,” he said. “As all those who have been affected by cancer will know, such kind thoughts are the greatest comfort and encouragement,” Charles wrote.
Update on King Charles’ cancer treatment
He continued: “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 organizations 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.”
Exactly what kind of cancer King Charles was diagnosed with is still not known. However, as per Sky News, the monarch has regularly attended private appointments in London. Shortly before Christmas, the news outlet reported that Charles will continue with his cancer treatment in 2025.
Moreover, sources said his treatment “has been moving in a positive direction.” Speaking to Sky, Laura Lee, chief executive of the cancer support charity Maggie’s–which Queen Camilla is president of–said it’s not rare that cancer treatment takes time.
“It’s very common for treatment to be ongoing for very long periods of time, as is the treatment that the Princess of Wales went through, which is an intense period of treatment over a year, and then it comes to a point where it’s on an end, and she’s on that recovery from some of the impacts of her treatment,” Lee told Sky News.
“So we’ve got immunotherapy, chemotherapy, surgery, hormone therapy. There are all sorts of different treatment modalities. And so it’s not surprising at all.”
She continued: “What we’ve heard from our centre visitors, it’s been good that they haven’t just shone a light on one specific cancer type, but they’ve shone a light on cancer as a whole, and that there’s varying treatment and varying impacts and varying different ways of navigating the challenges that cancer bring. And I think that approach has been much more effective and positive for the cancer community. I know firsthand that everyone is so grateful to them for doing that.”
Set to travel to Italy as part of state visit
Charles has taken some time away from his royal duties while undergoing cancer treatment. Meanwhile, Camilla and his son, Prince William, have supported him by taking on a number of engagements, including some abroad. Now though, it’s been said that King Charles will travel to Italy for a state visit in April, accompanied by his wife.
In early February, Buckingham Palace announced that Charles and Camilla would visit Italy and the Holy See in early April. The king and queen will meet Pope Francis to mark the celebration of the 2025 Catholic Holy Year. The couple will take on engagements in both Ravenna and Rome, where they will be “celebrating the strong bilateral relationship between Italy and the United Kingdom,” the palace said.
For Charles, it will be his 17th trip to Italy and his first overseas trip this year as monarch. Speaking to GB News, King Charles’ former butler Grant Harrold praised his former employer’s careful approach to the state visit and consideration of his health.
“I think also he’s getting on a little bit, obviously he’s a little bit older. I mean when his mother became Queen and she was undertaking state visits, obviously she was a lot younger. I think because of obviously his age and his recent health and everything, they’ve probably just kind of been sensible about how they plan these kind of things. This is already his ninth visit since becoming king,” he said.
The former royal butler continued: “I just think they’re probably just planning it carefully and trying to make the most of his time while he’s overseas. With all state visits, it can be just for a couple of days or up to about a week. I’m not too sure exactly how long he’s there for. But again, these kinds of things, when they get planned, they make the most of it.”
Harrold continued by saying that he believes King Charles is “doing really well ” and is “very positive” despite the tough treatment.
“The amazing thing is that they have this resilience just to carry on. And that’s what he’s very much doing is we know he’s great. He’s a great example.”
The fact that Charles is back on track despite his cancer treatment is, of course, an excellent sign. However, not everyone is entirely confident that things are as good as they seem. Writing for News.com.au, royal expert Daniela Elser wrote about a newly taken photo of Charles, comparing it to one just taken four years ago. She said that the “ordinary” looking photo proved “the desperate situation that’s unfolding behind Palace Gates.”
She wrote that the 2020 picture, taken in Jerusalem, Israel, showed the “unmistakable” difference in King Charles’ appearance, which is “painfully hard to ignore. “
“The King might have been all smiles at church in late January, but Buckingham Palace is today facing down a previously unheard of, never-considered royal scenario — how to keep Crown Inc going in the time of an aging, cancer-battling monarch who is increasingly rattling around the Palace, stranded and with fewer than ever people to call on,” Elser wrote in a column for News.com.au, continuing by comparing him to the late Queen Elizabeth II.
“As he ages and as he battles cancer, he has only very few working members of the royal family left he can rely on and delegate to in order to help him shoulder the load,” Elser added.
King Charles has lost two great friends in one year
Although Charles is staying positive despite the very tough 12 months that have been, he has also faced some quite heartbreaking times. In 2022, he lost his dear mother, Queen Elizabeth II, which led to him assuming the throne. The world mourned the late queen, who spent more than 70 years as the United Kingdom’s head of state.
“The death of my beloved Mother, Her Majesty The Queen, is a moment of the greatest sadness for me and all members of my family,” Charles said in a statement at the time.
“We mourn profoundly the passing of a cherished Sovereign and a much-loved Mother. I know her loss will be deeply felt throughout the country, the Realms and the Commonwealth, and by countless people around the world. “
Later in a speech, he turned to his late “darling mama,” saying: “As you begin your last great journey to join my dear late Papa, I want simply to say this: thank you. Thank you for your love and devotion to our family and to the family of nations you have served so diligently all these years. May ‘flights of Angels sing thee to thy rest.’”
Sadly, it’s not only his mother Charles has lost in recent years. In March 2024, his longtime friend Ian Farquhar suddenly passed away, and just months ago, details about his passing became known.
Known as “The Captain,” Ian Farquhar was a close friend of Queen Elizabeth II and King Charles. He died after becoming trapped between his bed and a wall at his home. His daughter, Victoria, issued a statement after his passing, describing how he loved horses. Tragically, alcohol was a problem.
“He went to Eton then joined the military and went to Sandhurst, he became the queen mother’s equerry, he said he was essentially the queen mother’s bodyguard. He was a huge lover of horses and would go on hunts where there would be a dinner afterwards.”
King Charles “deeply saddened” by his good friend Ian Farquhar’s passing
The statement continued: “The amount of drinking was considered normal for the activity but as time went on we thought he had a drinking problem. He would drink a litre of gin and a couple of bottles of wine in a day. He did try and stop and he would for a couple of weeks, doctors advised Ian that if he did not look after himself he would die.”
Now, Charles has suffered another heartbreak. On Tuesday, he announced the sad news that his close friend and spiritual leader, The Aga Khan, passed away in Lisbon, Portugal, surrounded by his family at age 88. The Aga Khan, also known as Prince Karim, and King Charles have often been pictured together on royal engagements. He even celebrated his Golden and Diamond Jubilees with Queen Elizabeth II, who held a dinner in his honor.
The late Aga Khan, considered one of the wealthiest people in the world, was also the Founding Patron of the King’s Trust. As per Town & Country, King Charles is “deeply saddened” by Prince Karim’s death. He is said to have been in touch with the family privately.
The Aga Khan Foundation said in a statement: “His Highness Prince Karim Al-Hussaini, Aga Khan IV, 49th hereditary Imam of the Shia Ismaili Muslims and direct descendant of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), passed away peacefully in Lisbon on 4 February 2025, aged 88, surrounded by his family.”
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