Kate Middleton Is Already Back to Royal Duties After Holding First Meeting Since Chemotherapy

The Princess of Wales attended a Royal Foundation meeting on Sept. 17.

Kate Middleton in a purple suit
(Image credit: Getty Images)

On Sept. 9, the Princess of Wales announced she had finished chemotherapy treatment and that she was "looking forward to being back at work"—and it seems that time has come even sooner than fans expected.

The 42-year-old royal—who serves as joint patron of the Royal Foundation alongside husband Prince William—attended a meeting for the Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood at Windsor Castle on Sept. 17, per GB News reporter Cameron Walker on X.

This marks the first work meeting the Princess of Wales has held since starting chemotherapy this spring.

Her work with early childhood development is something the royal holds close to her heart, having launched the Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood in 2021.

Per the centre's website, its goal is to "drive awareness of and action on the extraordinary impact of the early years, in order to transform society for the future."

"Over the last decade, the Princess of Wales has spent time looking into how experiences in early childhood are often the root cause of today’s hardest social challenges, such as addiction, family breakdown, poor mental health, suicide and homelessness," the Centre for Early Childhood's website notes.

Although it's unclear what the foundation discussed on Tuesday, the meeting is a positive move toward the Princess of Wales returning to duties this autumn.

On Sept. 6, she hinted at her future work on social media, congratulating the UK Scouts for appointing its new UK Chief Scout, Dwayne Fields. "Looking forward to working with you!" she ended the post.

Last week, the mom of three shared a moving video on social media announcing that although she'd completed chemo, her "path to healing and full recovery is long."

She did, however, note that she was excited about "undertaking a few more public engagements in the coming months."

Kristin Contino
Senior Royal and Celebrity Editor

Kristin Contino is Marie Claire's Senior Royal and Celebrity editor. She's been covering royalty since 2018—including major moments such as the Platinum Jubilee, Queen Elizabeth II’s death and King Charles III's coronation—and places a particular focus on the British Royal Family's style and what it means.

Prior to working at Marie Claire, she wrote about celebrity and royal fashion at Page Six Style and covered royalty from around the world as chief reporter at Royal Central. Kristin has provided expert commentary for outlets including the BBC, Sky News, US Weekly, the Today Show and many others.

Kristin is also the published author of two novels, “The Legacy of Us” and “A House Full of Windsor.” She's passionate about travel, history, horses, and learning everything she can about her favorite city in the world, London.