King Charles urges early screenings in cancer fight

PTI

London

Britain’s King Charles III has shared an important “milestone” in his battle against cancer that will see his weekly treatment schedule scaled back and used the “good news” to urge people to take up screenings to ensure early diagnosis
of the disease.

The 77-year-old monarch issued a rare health-related video message on Friday evening to coincide with a ‘Stand Up To Cancer’ joint campaign by the Cancer Research UK charity and Channel 4 television.

It marks nearly two years since Buckingham Palace had revealed that Charles would undergo treatment for an unidentified
form of cancer.

“I am able to share with you the good news that thanks to early diagnosis, effective intervention and adherence to ‘doctors’ orders’, my own schedule of cancer treatment can be reduced in the New Year,” said Charles, the pre-recorded message.

“This milestone is both a personal blessing and a testimony to the remarkable advances that have been made in cancer care in recent years; testimony that I hope may give encouragement to the 50 per cent of us who will be diagnosed with the illness at some point in our lives,” he said. He promoted a new national “Screening Checker” online tool, which allows the British public to check whether they are eligible for breast, bowel or cervical cancer screening through the National Health Service (NHS).

“Throughout my own cancer journey, I have been profoundly moved by what I can only call the ‘community of care’ that surrounds every cancer patient – the specialists, the nurses, researchers and volunteers who work tirelessly to save and improve lives,” said Charles.

“But I have also learned something that troubles me deeply – at least 9 million people in our country are not up to date with the cancer screenings available to them. That is at least 9 million opportunities for early diagnosis being missed… Early diagnosis quite simply saves lives,” he stressed.

According to palace sources, the King has chosen not to reveal the kind of cancer he has been treated for partly because he does not want one type of cancer to appear more significant or attract more attention than others.

“His Majesty has responded exceptionally well to treatment and his doctors advise that ongoing measures will now move into a precautionary phase,” Buckingham Palace said in a statement accompanying the televised address.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer praised the rare video intervention as a “powerful message” that will help save lives.

“I know I speak for the entire country when I say how glad I am that his cancer treatment will be reduced in the New Year. Early cancer screening saves lives,” he said.

Charles had postponed all public-facing engagements when the diagnosis was officially revealed in February 2024. However, he continued with his duties as Britain’s head of state behind closed doors, including conducting audiences and dealing with official documentation.

The King returned to public duties in April last year with a visit to the University College Hospital Macmillan Cancer Centre in central London where he first spoke of his “shock” at being diagnosed with cancer.

“As I have observed before, the darkest moments of illness can be illuminated by the greatest compassion. But compassion must be paired with action. This December, as we gather to reflect on the year past, I pray that we can each pledge, as part of our resolutions for the year ahead, to play our part in helping to catch cancer early.

“Your life – or the life of someone you live – may depend upon it,” Charles concluded in the video message.

Macmillan Cancer Support said it was “incredibly grateful” to the King for sharing his experience “with such openness and honesty.”

“The King’s reminder of the importance of screening and early detection is an important message for us all,” it said.