How King Charles’ announcement about his cancer journey sets historic royal precedent

In a rare respite from the treatment shrouded in secrecy, King Charles told the nation on December 12 that the process is on its way to being “reduced in the new year”, welcoming the “good news” with unusually visible candor.

The announcement received a national broadcast and marked one of the most direct instances of the King discussing the illness which he was initially diagnosed with in 2024.

Why Charles’ announcement is a far cry from the predecessors in his position and what it means for his and the British monarchy’s future, let’s explore.

Early management of monarchs’ health

In a cruel twist of fate perhaps, King Charles became the first British sovereign to be diagnosed with cancer since his own grandfather, King George VI.

Father to Queen Elizabeth and succeeding the throne following his brother’s abdication, the former King became a heavy smoker under the burden of a role he was never expected to step up for, contracting severe lung cancer and passing away at the age of just 56 in February 1952.

Notably, his cancer was never announced to the public, who only became aware of the tragedy following his unexpected death. However, shockingly enough, even the monarch himself was kept in the dark about the severity of his own illness.

NBC News had reported at the time when Charles’ initial diagnosis was announced that Sarah Gristwood, a journalist, “and other historians say that even the king wasn’t told that it was, in fact, carcinoma — lung cancer — which, doctors have said since then, appeared to have spread to his right lung.”

While Gristwood told the outlet that it was a “striking thing” that the establishment “actually announced” the reigning King’s ailment — “The royal tradition was always to keep any sign of ordinary human fallibility behind closed doors.”

Similarly, Queen Elizabeth’s poor health during her final days was never brought to attention, with the late monarch quietly retreating to her Scottish abode, Balmoral Castle, when her condition had presumably worsened beyond cure, later passing away in September 2022.

The significant hope instilled by the latest announcement

While potentially fatal developments in the monarchs’ health have always been kept strictly under wraps, it is worth noting that perhaps King Charles being candid about his cancer at this stage is an indication that the illness is not terminal.

It can be considered that the King is so open about his treatment precisely because it is going well and the Firm sees no harm in making it public, while revealing part of his own journey with cancer to urge his nation towards seeking “early diagnosis” makes the gesture even more thoughtful.

According to Cameron Walker, royal reporter for the GB News, “I understand the King wanted to share tonight’s message to encourage greater uptake of the nine million missed opportunities among those eligible for existing breast, bowel and cervical cancer screening programmes.”

‘A time of potential crisis’

Amid the warm welcome which the King’s latest announcement has received, other parties have proposed if the timing of the candid admission is perhaps too convenient.

In The Spectator’s newly published analysis, titled How candid is King Charles being about his cancer treatment?, British author Alexander Larman noted, “Cynics will also wonder why, exactly, this statement is being made now, at a time of potential crisis for the institution of the monarchy.”

“After a considerable period of prevarication, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s loss of his titles and royal status should have been enough to bring that grim matter to an end,” the literary editor for The Spectator World continued.

Larman further warned that King Charles’ public announcement “runs the risk” of making him look “weak” — “As a man, Charles will only attract sympathy and understanding, but as the figurehead for a beleaguered institution, he runs the risk of looking weak: a sick man in charge of a declining kingdom.”

It is important to note that the former Prince Andrew, whose titles and honours were stripped by his elder brother in October, was included in a new photographic release in the US regarding the Epstein case the same day as the King’s pre-recorded announcement was set to be aired.