Princess Kate is "Doing What's Right For Her" as She Continues Cancer Treatment, Source Says 

"She is dealing with it the best she can." 

Kate Middleton at Trooping the Colour
(Image credit: Getty Images)

After Kate Middleton made a triumphant return to the public eye at this year's Trooping the Colour ceremony, a source close to the royal family is revealing how the Princess of Wales is continuing to handle her ongoing preventative cancer treatment.

"She has been doing what’s right for her and recovering privately at home," the insider told People exclusively for the publication's latest cover story. "She is dealing with it the best she can."

Prior to her surprise Trooping the Colour appearance, Princess Kate gave royal fans an update on her health as she continues treatment for an unspecified type of cancer.

"I am making good progress, but as anyone going through chemotherapy will know, there are good days and bad days," Middleton wrote in a statement shared by Kensington Palace via its various social media accounts. "On those bad days you feel weak, tired and you have to give in to your body resting. But on the good days, when you feel stronger, you want to make the most of feeling well."

She went on to say that her "treatment is ongoing and will be for a few more months."

"On the days I feel well enough, it is a joy to engage with school life, spend personal time on the things that give me energy and positivity, as well as starting to do a little work from home," she continued.

While Princess Kate is reportedly "doing what's right for her" as she continues to focus on her health, royal historian Amanda Foreman tells People that Prince William and his wife are prioritizing their privacy more than ever before.

"It is really impressive how they are still able to command all this secrecy," Foreman told the publication. "They are totally running this."

That "command" has, at times, backfired on the royal family, especially after Kensington Palace shared the now infamous Mother's Day photo of Middleton. After the photo was found to be doctored, conspiracy theories and since-debunked rumors permeated the internet and to the horror of the Firm. Prince William was reportedly "furious" by the endless scrutiny and online attacks, while King Charles made it clear that anyone who dared to criticize the Princess of Wales would "risk being read the Riot Act." In a rather unconventional move, Princess Kate even took the blame for the photo debacle and issued a public apology.

According to royal author Katie Nicholl, Middleton's appearance at Trooping the Colour in honor of King Charles second official birthday "took a toll" on the royal as well, despite her joyful demeanor.

“I think a day like Saturday—where she knows the eyes of the world are on her, there is a huge amount of scrutiny—that will take its toll,” Nicholl told Entertainment Tonight. “I think we can probably imagine that she probably had a long and well-deserved rest afterwards. I don’t think we can expect to see her in public for a little while. That’s going to take some recovery from.”

She went on to add that while the Princess of Wales “looked impeccable,” she was “on her feet for a long period of time” and at one point while "watching the parade and was offered a seat, which she gratefully accepted."

"That’s just a bit of an acknowledgment that she is not as strong, not as fit, as she was before she went into this treatment," Nicholl explained.

Danielle Campoamor
Weekend Editor

Danielle Campoamor is Marie Claire's weekend editor covering all things news, celebrity, politics, culture, live events, and more. In addition, she is an award-winning freelance writer and former NBC journalist with over a decade of digital media experience covering mental health, reproductive justice, abortion access, maternal mortality, gun violence, climate change, politics, celebrity news, culture, online trends, wellness, gender-based violence and other feminist issues. You can find her work in The New York Times, Washington Post, TIME, New York Magazine, CNN, MSNBC, NBC, TODAY, Vogue, Vanity Fair, Harper's Bazaar, Marie Claire, InStyle, Playboy, Teen Vogue, Glamour, The Daily Beast, Mother Jones, Prism, Newsweek, Slate, HuffPost and more. She currently lives in Brooklyn, New York with her husband and their two feral sons. When she is not writing, editing or doom scrolling she enjoys reading, cooking, debating current events and politics, traveling to Seattle to see her dear friends and losing Pokémon battles against her ruthless offspring. You can find her on X, Instagram, Threads, Facebook and all the places.