Palace gives update

King: Cancer treatment shows positive progress

King Charles responds well to cancer treatment.(Bild: APA/AFP/POOL/Chris Jackson)

Buckingham Palace has announced that King Charles' cancer treatment is progressing in a positive direction. However, Sky News reports, citing palace sources, that the monarch's treatment cycle will continue into the new year.

A palace insider: "His treatment has moved in a positive direction and as a controlled condition, the treatment cycle will continue into next year." King Charles' cancer diagnosis was made public back in February, when the King decided to share his experience of the disease to encourage others affected. The palace is keeping quiet about the exact type of cancer and the specific method of treatment so as not to draw attention to a specific form of the disease. 

Full diary
Despite the ongoing treatment, King Charles is maintaining a busy schedule, including public appearances during the festive season. This decision underlines the optimism of the King and his entourage, according to palace sources.

In recent months, the monarch has regularly attended private appointments in London as part of his therapy. The positive reports on his state of health give hope that he will be able to continue to carry out his official duties.

King Charles is in good spirits.(Bild: APA/AFP/POOL/Chris Jackson)

In March, Princess Kate announced that she had also been diagnosed with cancer following a planned abdominal operation. Prince William's wife has since completed her chemotherapy. Laura Lee, chief executive of cancer charity Maggie's, of which Queen Camilla is patron, does not find the news about Charles' cancer treatment surprising.

"It's very common for treatment to continue over a very long period of time, like the treatment that the Princess of Wales underwent, intensive treatment for over a year," she outlines. "And then there comes a point where she's finished and she's recovering from some of the effects of her treatment. So we have immunotherapy, chemotherapy, surgery, hormone therapy. There are all sorts of different treatments. So it's not surprising at all."

Christmas without Andrew
For the King and his family, the Christmas holidays began on Thursday with the traditional pre-Christmas family dinner at Buckingham Palace. Prince William and Princess Kate were absent from this year's Christmas dinner. They are said to have already traveled with their children to their vacation home Anmer Hall in Norfolk on the Sandringham Estate, where they will celebrate Christmas with King Charles next week.  

Prince Andrew also did not attend the dinner due to his recent involvement with an alleged Chinese spy. He will also not be at Sandringham on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, but will be celebrating with his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson at Royal Lodge in Windsor. His daughters Princess Eugenie and the pregnant Princess Beatrice will also not be at Sandringham with their husbands and children this time, but will be spending the holidays with their respective in-laws. 

According to Prince William, around 45 guests, including Queen Camilla's children and grandchildren, will nevertheless be attending the royal Christmas celebrations.