Catherine, Princess of Wales, has been diagnosed with cancer and has begun chemotherapy, she announced in a video message on Friday, in which she described the past two months as “incredibly tough for our entire family.”

It comes after a period of intense uncertainty about the health of Catherine, who underwent abdominal surgery in January and largely disappeared from public view as she tried to recuperate.

Like the king, Catherine, 42, did not specify what kind of cancer she has, but asked the public and news media to respect her desire for privacy.

  • Xhieron@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    99
    arrow-down
    10
    ·
    9 months ago

    I think the British royal family is a scourge on the earth, responsible for untold amounts of suffering. The UK, British Isles, British people, and world would be a better place without it. I truly hate everything the Windsors stand for, along with their ancestors going back hundreds of years.

    But I hate cancer more.

    I think it’s possible to have complex feelings about this. Nobody deserves cancer. A lot of the kings of England deserve to have had their heads cut off, but none of them deserved cancer, and certainly not this lady who just lucked and schemed and Machiavellied herself into a life of incomparable privilege inside one of the most powerful dynasties still in existence–the same thing anyone would have done given the chance.

    Fuck the royal family. But fuck cancer more. I hope she comes out of it alright, because her husband needs to break the British monarchy, and it would be nicer for him if he had his wife with him when he did.

    [American here, if it wasn’t obvious.]

        • Aggravationstation@lemmy.ml
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          14
          ·
          9 months ago

          Yup I’m British and I can’t stand the whole concept. I’m a republican (don’t freak out Americans, that just means I want Britain to be a republic without a monarchy).

        • borari@sh.itjust.works
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          7
          ·
          9 months ago

          Hating the British royalty specifically also makes me think British. I’m quite disappointed more people don’t hate monarchy in general though.

          I guess in 2024 nobody believes in divine right, and I recognize that the monarchs in the vast majority of countries with active monarchies have only ceremonial power, but i still struggle to understand how people in the Commonwealth realms, Belgium, Denmark, Sweden, Spain, etc., are cool thinking that some rich fuck is somehow better than them or important in any way just because their ancestor was the last person sitting on the throne when everybody decided they weren’t playing the game anymore.

          Is it something where they appreciate the tie to history? Even so why would you want a tie to a history that said your ancestors were intrinsically lesser than just because they didn’t have as much land, as big a sword/army, or as much money to pay off the church?

    • Hadriscus@lemm.ee
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      1
      ·
      edit-2
      9 months ago

      Really ? anyone ? I dig your nuanced opinion, but a life of royalty is close to the bottom in the list of things I want

  • Gork@lemm.ee
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    80
    arrow-down
    4
    ·
    9 months ago

    She luckily has access to the best medical care you can find in the world. Can’t say the same for most of the rest of us peasants if we get struck by cancer.

  • Veedem@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    43
    arrow-down
    2
    ·
    9 months ago

    Man, cancer will go for anyone. I hope she makes it through, especially for the sake of her children.

    • pete_the_cat@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      3
      ·
      9 months ago

      Yeah, people can throw out hate for the royals, but I’m just thinking about her, as a person, mother and wife. She’s only in her early 40s and her kids are young.

  • azimir@lemmy.ml
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    31
    arrow-down
    5
    ·
    edit-2
    9 months ago

    Damn. Fuck cancer. I have all kinds of issues with royalty and especially the British royal family, but I wouldn’t wish cancer on anyone.

    • Random Dent@lemmy.ml
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      27
      arrow-down
      1
      ·
      9 months ago

      I also wouldn’t wish the British tabloids on anyone. Going through this with every scumbag paparazzi in the country chasing you around, bothering everyone you’ve ever known and camping outside the hospital trying to get the most ill-looking photo of you has to be its own unique kind of hell.

      • RupeThereItIs@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        1
        ·
        9 months ago

        She chose to become part of the royal family, she knew what that entails.

        Frankly being in the tabloids isn’t payment enough for what the get as royalty.

        I can’t comprehend why the people of the UK put up with that level of bullshit. The rest of the world gave up on monarchy over a century ago.

    • CptEnder@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      10
      ·
      9 months ago

      Yeah I was kinda hoping for some stupid shenanigan fun for why she was “missing” or “replaced” like the royals doing their fucking weird shit. Really fucking sucks she has cancer, no one deserves that. Makes all the funny memes and news coverage feel bad now =\

    • RunningInRVA@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      1
      arrow-down
      1
      ·
      9 months ago

      Do you just expect them to denounce their thrones? We all have issues with them but this is just a continuation of thousands of years of tradition and history. It’s engrained in the British.

  • subspaceinterferents@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    23
    arrow-down
    2
    ·
    9 months ago

    Damn shame, for her or anyone with cancer. I had a friend, quite a while ago, in her 30s. She developed ovarian cancer, and it took her out in short order. You never know, best to enjoy every day.

  • kylie_kraft@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    26
    arrow-down
    7
    ·
    9 months ago

    I hope the conspiracy theorists who were spinning tales these past few weeks feel super awesome about this

    • Raxiel@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      2
      ·
      9 months ago

      They’ll be spinning up a new one about how it was “Saint Meghan” that gave it to her.

  • KoalaUnknown@lemmy.worldOP
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    21
    arrow-down
    5
    ·
    edit-2
    9 months ago

    She is the wife of Prince William, who is currently next in line for the British Royal Throne for those who do not know.

    • Hadriscus@lemm.ee
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      1
      ·
      9 months ago

      Wow so that means she should become queen ? or is that not how it works ? can there be a king and a queen at the same time ?

      • BottleOfAlkahest@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        2
        ·
        9 months ago

        There usually is a king and queen at the same time because traditionall Kings are in charge. Historically the Queen was the wife of the King. Jusy like Camilla is currently Queen Consort. If/When William takes the throne his wife will be Queen Consort. The King is still a higher position than the Queen which is why Prince Phillip was Prince Consort. If he’d been titled as King then he would have “out ranked” his wife.

        So yes Kate will be Queen (trchnically Queen Consort), but William will be “top” royal as King.

  • Smoogs@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    5
    ·
    9 months ago

    As much as I am opposed to royals, cancer gets everyone. I hope for everyone’s sake cancer gets cured soon regardless of who gets it.it is an awful disease and it’s only getting worse and more prevalent. At least that is my take away.

  • Furbag@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    2
    ·
    9 months ago

    Can we finally leave this woman alone?

    Surprise! She had cancer all this time! Do the people who have been pestering her to make public appearances feel any shame yet?

  • Tolstoshev@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    8
    arrow-down
    16
    ·
    edit-2
    9 months ago

    Buckingham palace was until recently lying and saying it wasn’t cancer so why should we believe them now?

    • themeatbridge@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      27
      arrow-down
      1
      ·
      9 months ago

      Beelieve them, don’t believe them, who gives a shit what you believe? You’re not entitled to know everything.

      • IvanOverdrive@lemm.ee
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        3
        ·
        9 months ago

        I’m sure she has people to do that for her. Maybe designers not trained to make fake images under scrutiny, but I doubt she made that photo. She’s a royal after all.

        • Confused_Emus@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          2
          ·
          9 months ago

          Yeah, that photoshop story didn’t make any sense to me when it came out. My immediate thought was that it sounded silly to think the royals touch up their own photos - that are mostly taken by professional photographers to begin with.

    • wildbus8979@sh.itjust.works
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      25
      arrow-down
      37
      ·
      9 months ago

      Can’t believe the amount of bootlickers here wishing her well. Bro, she’s a monarch, she belongs in a guillotine.