Kate Middleton shares personal cancer update: ‘I am not out of the woods yet’

Kate Middleton in Windsor
The Prince and Princess of Wales/Instagram

The Princess of Wales, Kate Middleton, appeared in a new photo released on June 14, marking the first image of Kate since she shared her cancer news publicly via video in March. The new photo shows the her outdoors in Windsor, where she lives with Prince William and their three children.

“I have been blown away by all the kind messages of support and encouragement over the last couple of months,” she said. “It really has made the world of difference to William and me and has helped us both through some of the harder times.”

“I am making good progress, but as anyone going through chemotherapy will know, there are good days and bad days. On those bad days, you feel weak, tired and you have to give in to your body resting. But on the good days, when you feel stronger, you want to make the most of feeling well,” she continued.

The Princess of Wales said her cancer treatment will continue for “a few more months.”

In a video released in March, she says she began chemotherapy in late February after recovering from her “major abdominal surgery.” Though the type of cancer hasn’t been disclosed, she is currently in treatment alongside her father-in-law, King Charles, who is also undergoing cancer treatment.

In her video, Kate said of her surgery, “at the time, it was thought that my condition was non-cancerous.” Unfortunately, tests showed that cancer had been present and she was advised to undergo a course of preventative chemotherapy as a result.

“This of course came as a huge shock, and William and I have been doing everything we can to process and manage this privately for the sake of our young family,” Kate says in the video, which was filmed at Windsor Castle earlier this week. “As you can imagine, this has taken time. It has taken me time to recover from major surgery in order to start my treatment.”

The mother of three also mentioned her children in her statement earlier this year.

“It has taken us time to explain everything to George, Charlotte and Louis in a way that is appropriate for them, and to reassure them that I am going to be ok,” she says. “As I have said to them; I am well and getting stronger every day by focusing on the things that will help me heal; in my mind, body and spirits.”

“I am learning how to be patient, especially with uncertainty,” Middleton says in her new Instagram post. “Taking each day as it comes, listening to my body, and allowing myself to take this much needed time to heal. Thank you so much for your continued understanding, and to all of you who have so bravely shared your stories with me.”