King Charles disclosed his cancer diagnosis in February, following his treatment for a benign prostate condition.
A new royal biography states Queen Camilla was against the King disclosing his cancer diagnosis (Image: Getty)
A new royal biography states Queen Camilla was initially against King Charles’s decision to disclose his cancer diagnosis to the public but was “overruled”.
The monarch, 75, talked about his health openly when he announced he was undergoing treatment for a benign prostate condition in January of this year at The London Clinic.
Then, in February, it was announced he had been diagnosed with an undisclosed form of cancer, which was discovered during the procedure.
Buckingham Palace revealed at the time: “No further details are being shared at this stage, except to confirm that His Majesty does not have prostate cancer.”
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In the new book titled ‘Catherine, the Princess of Wales’ by Robert Jobson, the author writes: “Queen Camilla had initially been against disclosing his condition, but the King overruled her as he felt it was a chance to take a lead and in doing so to encourage men experiencing similar symptoms to seek timely medical attention.”
King Charles and Queen Camilla met patients living with cancer earlier this year (Image: Getty)
However, the reason behind Camilla disagreeing with Charles’s decision has not been disclosed in the book. Following the King’s announcement, there was a “significant increase in searches” related to “enlarged prostate” on the National Health Service website.
Jobson wrote: “The NHS England page on benign prostate enlargement had more than 26,000 visits in the 48 hours after the announcement, compared to a daily average of just 1,400.”
Analysis by NHS England, which runs the NHS website, found visits to the prostate enlargement page jumped to one visit every five seconds the week the news of the King’s health condition was released.
The national clinical director for NHS England at the time said: “Benign prostate enlargement is common in men over the age of 50 and you would expect around 70-80% over the age of 75 to have an enlarged prostate.”
“Many men worry that having an enlarged prostate means they have an increased risk of developing prostate cancer but this isn’t the case. Help is available and there are a number of tests that can be done to rule out cancer.”
King Charles is the patron of several cancer charities (Image: Getty)
The royal author also claims Charles wanted to avoid the “fake news” which often circulated whenever the late Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip received medical attention.
Speaking about the King’s decision, Robert added: “He was lauded for doing so, with commentators saying he had ushered in a new era of transparency in matters of health and the Royal Family.”
It has been a tumultuous year for the Royal Family, as the Princess of Wales also revealed in an emotional video in March that she had been diagnosed with cancer and was undergoing chemotherapy.
Princess Kate, however, has since made two official royal appearances this year, including Trooping the Colour, the King’s official birthday parade, and the Wimbledon Men’s Final, as patron of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club.
