Queen Camilla says keeping King's cancer secret was 'difficult'
Queen Camilla has spoken publicly for the first time about how hard it was to keep King Charles III's cancer diagnosis a secret. In a video released on Wednesday to mark the 30th anniversary of cancer charity Maggie's, the Queen revealed she nearly disclosed the news during a visit to a Maggie's centre — days before Buckingham Palace made the official announcement in February 2024.
Key Takeaways
- Queen Camilla says it was "quite difficult" to stay silent about King Charles's cancer diagnosis during a January 2026 visit to a Maggie's cancer support centre.
- The visit to the Maggie's centre at the Royal Free Hospital in London took place on January 31, 2024 — five days before the palace officially announced the King's diagnosis on February 5, 2024.
- Camilla said she was "longing to let it out" but held back, feeling it "wasn't the time."
- King Charles, 77, is still receiving treatment for an undisclosed form of cancer, though he has said treatment can be scaled back following effective early intervention.
- Charity Maggie's credits the royal family's openness about cancer with encouraging thousands of others to seek support.
What exactly did Queen Camilla say?
Speaking in a short film produced for Maggie's 30th anniversary, Queen Camilla described visiting the charity's newly opened centre at the Royal Free Hospital in London on January 31, 2024. At the time, King Charles had already been diagnosed but the news had not yet been made public. "Nobody could say anything at the time. That was quite difficult," she said.
Camilla admitted she came close to revealing the diagnosis. "I almost said something but, you know, I felt that it wasn't the time to say," she recalled. "I was just longing to let it out but obviously I couldn't." The Queen, who serves as president of Maggie's, described how seeing others affected by cancer made her appreciate the charity's work even more deeply.
How did King Charles respond to his diagnosis?
Queen Camilla praised her husband's resolve, describing him as her "poor husband" who refused to let illness slow him down. "Nothing stopped him. He just said, 'This is my way. I'm going to cope with it,'" she said. Charles resumed public-facing royal engagements in April 2024 and in December last year gave a rare update, revealing that an early diagnosis and effective treatment meant his care could be scaled back.
Buckingham Palace has not disclosed the specific type of cancer the King has. He is still receiving treatment. His openness, alongside that of Princess Kate, the Princess of Wales — who also underwent cancer treatment — has been widely credited with reducing stigma around the disease.
Why does this matter beyond the Royal Family?
Maggie's chief executive Laura Lee said the Queen's candid words shine a light on the emotional burden carried by the loved ones of cancer patients. "To now hear the Queen's completely understandable and natural response as a wife shines a light on why it is so important that family and friends also get the support they need," Lee said in a statement reported by PA Media.
Maggie's runs 27 cancer support centres across the UK and supports hundreds of thousands of people affected by cancer every year. The charity argues that high-profile figures speaking openly about cancer — whether patients or carers — has a measurable impact on public willingness to seek help. For more coverage of major health and public-interest stories, visit our news alerts hub. Full details of the Queen's comments were first reported by CNN.