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To many royal onlookers’ delight, Princess Kate made a surprise public appearance in Southport last month. The visit followed an emotional September 9 video, in which she announced she officially completed her preventative chemotherapy treatment and would be returning to work in a reduced capacity. Such circumstances means the princess will be picking and choosing her engagements. While her husband, Prince William, will be jetting off to South Africa this month, Middleton will be staying behind. Even so, royal experts suggest this trip signals a hopeful sign for Middleton’s health.

The heir will travel to Cape Town for the Earthshot Prize Awards ceremony on November 6. The Princess of Wales regularly accompanies William for the annual event. However, this year, she will remain an home with their kids, Prince George, 11, Princess Charlotte, 9, and Prince Louis, 6.

“Prince William has made it clear his family, their wellbeing and their privacy come first,” royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams told Express. “Catherine has been undergoing preventative chemotherapy for cancer, as she has so movingly told us, and though she has finished chemotherapy, she has said she still has a long way to go.”

However, according to Fitzwilliams, William would not even consider leaving his wife unless she felt comfortable.

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“William would undoubtedly not be going to South Africa, even though the trip is for the fourth Earthshot Prize Awards Ceremony, if he did not feel that she was doing well and was happy coping with the family in his absence,” he told the publication.

Even though the Earthshot Prize, an award given to five game-changing innovations to repair the planet, is something William holds very dear to his chest, Middleton is his priority.

“The prize is his brainchild, but we know that they are a devoted couple and what his priorities are, and that he feels able to go is another encouraging sign that she is doing well,” Fitzwilliams added.