Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

King Charles ‘doing well’ after prostate treatment with Queen at his bedside

The Queen left the hospital on Friday afternoon, telling the waiting media that the King was recovering from treatment for an enlarged prostate

Alex Ross
Friday 26 January 2024 14:04 EST
Comments
PMQs: Sunak sends 'best wishes' to King and Princess of Wales

Your support helps us to tell the story

This election is still a dead heat, according to most polls. In a fight with such wafer-thin margins, we need reporters on the ground talking to the people Trump and Harris are courting. Your support allows us to keep sending journalists to the story.

The Independent is trusted by 27 million Americans from across the entire political spectrum every month. Unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock you out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. But quality journalism must still be paid for.

Help us keep bring these critical stories to light. Your support makes all the difference.

The King is “doing well” after receiving treatment for an enlarged prostate, said the Queen as she left his bedside after almost six hours.

Charles underwent the procedure at The London Clinic in Marylebone on Friday, and is due to spend the night at the private hospital to recover.

The 75-year-old was pictured entering the hospital at 8.30am with the Queen, who later left at 3.10pm and appeared in good spirits.

King Charles arrives at The London Clinic for treatment for an enlarged prostate on Friday morning
King Charles arrives at The London Clinic for treatment for an enlarged prostate on Friday morning (Mirrorpix)

Smiling at waiting reporters, Camilla said the King was “doing well” following the procedure. “He’s doing well, thank you,” she said.

The London Clinic is the same hospital where the Princess of Wales is recovering from abdominal surgery last week.

Earlier on Friday, Charles took time to visit Kate, who is on the 11th day of her hospital stay after undergoing the operation last week.

A spokesperson for Buckingham Palace said on Friday: “The King was this morning admitted to a London hospital for scheduled treatment.

The Queen told waiting reporters that the King was ‘doing well’ after treatment
The Queen told waiting reporters that the King was ‘doing well’ after treatment (Reuters)

“His Majesty would like to thank all those who have sent their good wishes over the past week and is delighted to learn that his diagnosis is having a positive impact on public health awareness.”

The King had returned to London from Sandringham on Thursday ahead of the operation, and on Friday morning was pictured in the back of a car with the Queen on the way to the clinic.

Prime minister Rishi Sunak wished Charles the “very best” for his treatment and a “speedy recovery” afterwards, a Downing Street spokesperson said.

Charles received the diagnosis on 17 January after going for a check-up because he was experiencing symptoms associated with the benign condition.

The King made public his diagnosis in a bid to raise awareness and get more men to check for the condition
The King made public his diagnosis in a bid to raise awareness and get more men to check for the condition (PA)

He approved the announcement so a series of public engagements could be postponed. It’s also understood that he wanted to raise awareness of the condition and encourage other men to get themselves checked.

Benign prostate enlargement, common in men aged over 50, is not a cancer and usually does not pose a serious threat to health.

Since the King shared his diagnosis, the NHS website page on the condition received more than 26,000 visits in the following 48 hours, compared with a daily average of 1,400 visits.

On the same day as Buckingham Palace revealed his diagnosis, it was revealed that Kate was at The London Clinic recovering from her own operation. She was said to be “doing well” – but is unlikely to return to official duties until after Easter.

In another health episode for the Royal Family, last weekend, Sarah, Duchess of York, shared she had been diagnosed with melanoma skin cancer.

The 64-year-old received the news after several moles were removed when she was treated for breast cancer in June, with one found to be cancerous.

She was said to be in “good spirits” as doctors work to establish if the cancer has spread.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in