King Charles III is admitted to a hospital for a prostate operation
LONDON — King Charles III was admitted to a private London hospital Friday to undergo a “corrective procedure” for an enlarged prostate, Buckingham Place said, confirming a pre-planned treatment that was announced last week.
The 75-year-old monarch was doing well after being treated at the London Clinic, where the Princess of Wales, his daughter-in-law, is recovering after undergoing abdominal surgery. The king, who entered the hospital with Queen Camilla at his side, visited the princess at the hospital after he arrived.
“The King was this morning admitted to a London hospital for scheduled treatment,” the palace said. “His Majesty would like to thank all those who have sent their good wishes over the past week.”
Charles, who acceded to the throne 16 months ago, was diagnosed with the benign condition Jan. 17 after going for a checkup because he was experiencing symptoms. He canceled engagements and was urged to rest ahead of the procedure, which had concluded by Friday afternoon. Camilla left the hospital at 3:10 p.m. and appeared to be in good spirits.
The king decided to announce the surgery in advance in an effort to encourage other men to have their prostates checked in line with public health advice.
The palace said the king was “delighted to learn that his diagnosis is having a positive impact on public health awareness.”
Barring tragedy or revolution, Britain is set to have a man instead of a woman on the throne for the next 75 years at least.
The prostate is a small gland that surrounds the urethra, the tube that carries urine out of the body. An enlarged prostate can put pressure on the urethra and make it more difficult to urinate.
Britain’s National Health Service recommends that men see their doctors if they notice any problems with, or changes in, their usual pattern of urination. Surgery is usually recommended only when a patient experiences moderate to severe symptoms that don’t respond to medication.
Benign prostate enlargement is common in men over 50, and normally it isn’t a serious health threat, the NHS says.
“The risk of prostate cancer is no greater for men with an enlarged prostate than it is for men without an enlarged prostate,” the agency says on its website.
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News of the king’s treatment came amid a flurry of royal medical news over the last 10 days.
The Princess of Wales’ office at Kensington Palace said she had undergone planned abdominal surgery Jan. 16 for an undisclosed condition. The palace didn’t provide further details but said her condition wasn’t cancerous.
The 42-year-old princess, the former Kate Middleton, is the wife of Prince William, the heir to the throne. She is on the 11th day of her hospital stay and is expected to remain in the hospital for up to two weeks, the palace says.
Though she is physically active and has generally experienced good health, Kate was hospitalized with severe morning sickness when she was pregnant.
‘It all happened so fast,’ Prince Harry writes in an excerpt from his forthcoming memoir about a 2019 argument he allegedly had with Prince William.
Soon after Kate was hospitalized last week, the Duchess of York was diagnosed with a malignant skin cancer that was discovered during treatment for breast cancer. The melanoma was found after several moles were removed while she was undergoing reconstructive surgery following a mastectomy.
The duchess, 64, the ex-wife of Prince Andrew and the mother of princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, was once a favorite target of Britain’s tabloids. The former Sarah Ferguson, often called by her nickname, “Fergie,” has written a number of children’s books, as well as a historical romance for adults.
While it is somewhat unusual for members of the royal family to release details about their health, the announcements about Charles and Kate’s conditions were seen as a way to prevent speculation over their public appearances being postponed or canceled.
Stories about the health of Britain’s senior royals have been in the news repeatedly in recent years.
Speculation about the health of the late Queen Elizabeth II increased during the last months of her 70-year reign as undisclosed “mobility issues” limited her public appearances. After that, focus switched to Charles, who ascended the throne at an age when most of his contemporaries were long retired.
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