Catherine, Princess of Wales, reveals difficult period post cancer treatment

Catherine, Princess of Wales, made a visit to the Wellbeing Centre at Colchester Hospital in Essex, England, on Tuesday (02.07.25) where she opened up to patients, volunteers and staff about the difficulties she experience after completing her cancer treatment.

Catherine, Princess of Wales, has admitted the post-treatment phase of having cancer is a “really difficult” time – because you are expected to simply “be better”.

The 43-year-old royal is slowly returning to public life while in remission for cancer and she has now admitted the expectation that any cancer patient should simply be better when they finish their treatment is not realistic.

Catherine made her comments whilst speaking to staff, patients and volunteers at the RHS’ Wellbeing Garden at Colchester Hospital in Essex, England, on Tuesday (02.07.25).

She said: “There is a whole phase when you finish your treatment, everybody expects you to be better – go! But that’s not the case at all.

“You put on a sort of brave face, stoicism through treatment. Treatment’s done, then it’s like ‘I can crack on, get back to normal’ but actually the phase afterwards is really difficult.

“You’re not necessarily under the clinical team any longer but you’re not able to function normally at home as you perhaps once used to.

“And actually someone to help talk you through that, show you and guide you through that sort of phase that comes after treatment I think is really valuable.

“You have to find your new normal and that takes time.”

Catherine also admitted her cancer diagnosis was not only “life-changing” for her but also for her entire family, husband Prince William, their three children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, as well as her parents and in-laws such as King Charles.

The princess – who was known as Kate Middleton before she became part of the British royal family – said: “It’s life-changing for anyone, through first diagnosis or post-treatment and things like that.

“It is a life-changing experience both for the individual patient but also for the families as well and actually it sometimes goes unrecognised, you don’t necessarily, particularly when it’s the first time, you don’t appreciate how much impact it is going to have.

“Someone described the sort of healing, recovery journey to me as being like a sort of zig-zag.

“It’s a rollercoaster, it’s not one smooth plane, which you expect it to be, but the reality is it’s not – you go through hard times and to have a place like this, to have the support network, whether its through creativity and singing or gardening whatever it might be, is so valuable and it’s great that this community has it.

Catherine also revealed she had tried acupuncture – a traditional Chinese medicine which involves thin needles being inserted into specific parts of the body to promote healing and relieve pain – as part of her own recovery journey.

During her visit, the princess also planted roses in a garden specifically designed to be a peaceful and tranquil place for visitors.

Last month, Catherine cancelled an appearance at the Royal Ascot horse racing meet as she continues her recovery.

It was in January that the princess announced she was in remission from a undisclosed form of cancer, Catherine began chemotherapy treatment in February 2024, after cancerous cells were found in tissues removed during an operation at the London Clinic in January 2024.