Some people found it odd that Kate Middleton wasn't immediately super forthright about her health issues in early 2024. But it's long been a royal family tradition to address medical issues privately. Some of their health scares weren't even learned about until that royal later died. But Kate did eventually open up about undergoing abdominal surgery in January 2024 and the ensuing cancer diagnosis. And she's not the first royal to deal with a major health issue privately or publicly.
The royals are regular people after all, so even with the finances for the best medical care the UK can offer, they're not exempt from battling the same types of medical problems any of us can face. Kate acknowledged as much when she spoke in an Instagram video discussing her health. "At this time, I am also thinking of all those whose lives have been affected by cancer. For everyone facing this disease, in whatever form, please do not lose faith or hope. You are not alone," she said.
Keep reading to learn about 15 royal family health scares through the years.
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Kate Middleton was hospitalized during pregnancy.
The Princess of Wales struggled with an extreme form of morning sickness during all three of her pregnancies. She was first diagnosed with this issue, called hyperemesis gravidarum, when she was pregnant with Prince George. She actually had to be hospitalized at one point because it got so bad.
Kate revealed a cancer diagnosis.
In January 2024, royal fans were concerned to learn that the princess was having abdominal surgery. Kate has since revealed that cancer was discovered during that process, and she then started undergoing treatment. It's not known what type of cancer she has or how advanced it is, but we're all hoping she has a smooth recovery.
King Charles has also been diagnosed with cancer.
Kate was not the only royal family member dealing with cancer in 2024. King Charles announced in February that he had been diagnosed with the disease following what he thought would be a routine prostate treatment. He's continued to work as much as possible while receiving treatment, but there was a notable absence in the royal family between him and Kate bowing out of events.
More from CafeMom: Kate Middleton Made the Choice To Announce Cancer Diagnosis Alone & She Had a Good Reason
Queen Elizabeth secretly had bone marrow cancer.
It's not that surprising for a royal family member to want to keep their health issues private. Long before Kate Middleton delayed speaking on the subject, Queen Elizabeth reportedly kept her bone marrow cancer a secret until her death. After the monarch died, her diagnosis was reported in the biography, Elizabeth: An Intimate Portrait, according to the New York Post.
The Queen Mother had two types of cancer.
Cancer has been an issue for many royal family members. According to the Daily Mail, the Queen's mother reportedly dealt with colon cancer in the 1960s and then breast cancer in the 1980s. She underwent successful surgery both times, but this was another health scare that we only learned about after the Queen Mother's death in 2002.
The Queen's mother almost choked to death.
This was a health scare that the public did learn about, because it was big news when the Queen Mother was hospitalized in 1982 after choking on a fish bone. According to Express, she had to have surgery to remove the obstruction and was hospitalized for four days.
Princess Margaret suffered several strokes.
The Queen didn't experience serious health issues until much later in life, but her sister Princess Margaret was frequently in the press for her different struggles. Margaret, who was a habitual smoker, had to have part of her lung removed in 1985. And in 1998, she began experiencing frequent strokes, which eventually led to her death in 2002 at 71 years old, reported Today.
Prince Philip had heart problems.
In the last decade of his life, Prince Philip was in and out of the hospital for several heart-related issues, according to Business Insider. In fact, he was recovering from a heart procedure he'd had in March 2021 when he died a month later in April 2021 at age 99.
A pregnant Princess Diana threw herself down the stairs.
Princess Diana's fall down the stairs at Sandringham in 1982 was originally reported as an accident, according to USA Today. But Newsweek reported that she later revealed in the book Diana: Her True Story that the fall was deliberate. "Charles said I was crying wolf and I said I felt so desperate," the princess said. "So I threw myself down the stairs. The queen comes out, absolutely horrified, shaking — she was so frightened."
Fortunately both Diana and then-unborn Prince William were unharmed.
Diana struggled with her mental health.
The stairs incident was just one of Diana's cries for help while she was married to Charles. She also struggled in her early royal days with bulimia. For her to speak about the issue at all was unheard of at the time. But Diana was one of the first royals to really peel back the veil on issues of mental health.
Meghan Markle had a mental health crisis.
Decades after Diana's time, Meghan Markle would experience her own mental health crisis in the royal family. The Duchess of Sussex dealt with a lot of outside pressure and criticism when she was first married to Prince Harry, and it all became too much for her while she was pregnant with Archie. "I just didn’t want to be alive anymore," she later revealed to Oprah Winfrey in 2021.
She kept that private from the public for years, but at the time Meghan was at least able to open up to Harry. The two of them worked through things to help her get to a better place.
Note: If you or any of your loved ones are struggling with suicidal thoughts, you can always reach out to the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by calling 988. They are available 24/7 by phone or online chat.
Princess Eugenie needed scoliosis surgery.
As a child, Princess Eugenie underwent major corrective surgery to help with her scoliosis. She described the procedure to the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital Charity, and it sounded pretty brutal. The surgery took eight hours and titanium rods and screws were placed along her spine. "This was, of course, a scary prospect for a 12-year-old; I can still vividly remember how nervous I felt in the days and weeks before the operation," she said.
Years later, she proudly showed her surgery scar off in her backless wedding dress.
Sarah Ferguson had a breast cancer scare.
Sarah, Duchess of York, had her first brush with cancer in 2023, when a routine mammogram detected early breast cancer. She had surgery to remove it, and advocated strongly for preventive women's health care, since that's what helped catch her problem early.
Sarah was later diagnosed with skin cancer.
Unfortunately, after addressing her breast cancer, Sarah Ferguson was diagnosed with a second form of cancer in in early 2024. This time it was skin cancer. "Naturally another cancer diagnosis has been a shock but I'm in good spirits and grateful for the many messages of love and support," she wrote on Instagram in January.
Prince William and Charles were affected by the global health crisis in 2020.
In the early days of the 2020 global health crisis, NPR reported that the then-Prince Charles had been diagnosed with COVID-19. Since it was so early in the disease's existence, it was a scary prognosis. Fortunately he ended up being fine — as did Prince William who later revealed that he'd had the disease at the same time, per BBC.
Check out our Meghan Markle page for all the latest news about Meghan, Prince Harry, and their growing family.
