Cancer charities praise ‘brave’ Princess of Wales for speaking about her diagnosis

Cancer Research UK’s chief executive says high-profile cancer cases such as Catherine’s can help others to seek help early

• Princess of Wales receiving chemotherapy treatment for cancer
• What we know about the Princess of Wales’s cancer diagnosis
• Catherine’s statement in full

Cancer charities have praised the Princess of Wales for her “brave” decision to speak out about her cancer diagnosis as a way to encourage others to get their symptoms checked.

In a video message released on Friday, Catherine, 42, spoke of how her condition was discovered after she underwent major abdominal surgery in January. In the weeks that followed her procedure, wild rumours flew around her absence and silence – but she said she and her husband, Prince William, had needed time to explain the situation to their three children, George, 10, Charlotte, eight, and Louis, five.