The royal reception marked the first cancer-related joint engagement for Princess Kate and the King, as the sovereign continues to receive cancer treatment

King Charles; Kate Middleton.Credit : Jonathan Brady – Pool/Getty (2)

Kate Middleton and King Charles are celebrating a cancer charity’s milestone anniversary, a subject close to their hearts after both announcing their own diagnoses in 2024.

In their first joint event championing a cancer-related cause, the Princess of Wales and the King attended a reception at St. James’s Palace in London commemorating the 125th anniversary of Cancer Research U.K. on June 2. They were also joined by Queen Camilla and the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester at the event.

King Charles, 77, continues to undergo treatment for an undisclosed type of cancer, a diagnosis that was publicly announced in February 2024. In December 2025, the monarch shared the “good news” that treatment would be “reduced” this year.

Just a month after her father-in-law’s news about his cancer diagnosis, Princess Kate, 44, revealed in March 2024 that she was receiving treatment for an undisclosed form of cancer. She scaled down her royal duties that year to focus on her health, announcing in September 2024 that she had completed chemotherapy before sharing in January 2025 that she was in remission.

Kate Middleton attends Cancer Research U.K. reception on June 2, 2026.Jonathan Brady – Pool/Getty

At the time of their diagnoses, author Sally Bedell Smith told PEOPLE that King Charles and Princess Kate “always had a very good bond.”

“I don’t think it is presumptuous to say that she is like the daughter he never had,” she said.

“Obviously, they have this in common and can only bring them closer. It is a source of reassurance and consolation for both of them,” the author added of their health challenges.

Apart from being King and future queen, they are also “two patients going through a common health experience,” said a royal source, noting they “are bound to have a close connection.”

Queen Camilla and King Charles attend Cancer Research U.K. reception on June 2, 2026.Yui Mok / POOL / AFP via Getty

At Tuesday evening’s event, the royals met researchers, clinicians, volunteers and others involved in Cancer Research U.K.’s prevention, diagnosis and treatment plans.

The Princess of Wales, who wore a Rodarte red dress with white hearts print, attended the reception in her first public outing in several weeks, as she scaled back royal duties during her children’s half-term break from school. There, she spoke with Sebastian Bowen, husband of Deborah James. James, a journalist who became known as “BowelBabe” and spoke openly about her incurable bowel cancer, was given a damehood during a personal home visit by Prince William before she died in 2022.

King Charles speaks to Ronan Keating and his wife, Storm, during a Cancer Research U.K. reception on June 2, 2026.Jonathan Brady – Pool/Getty

The reception also included immersive installations highlighting the charity’s past, present and future innovations.

The King and Queen Camilla, 78, viewed visual representations of how technological innovation is transforming cancer research, and the palace gathering launched the organization’s 125th anniversary year.

The monarch has been a patron of Cancer Research U.K. since 2024, in a role that was announced when he returned to work after his cancer diagnosis.

Kate Middleton attends Cancer Research U.K. reception on June 2, 2026.Jonathan Brady – Pool/Getty

The monarch’s patronage of Cancer Research U.K. was unveiled when he and his wife visited University College Hospital Macmillan Cancer Centre in late April 2024 to showcase some of the research backed by the charity. The visit was significant as the King’s first public-facing engagement after the palace announced the news about his health that February and served as his official return to royal engagements after postponing such events at the advice of doctors.

King Charles joined a few family members in taking on an official role with Cancer Research U.K. two years ago. Prince Richard, the Duke of Gloucester, and his wife Birgitte, the Duchess of Gloucester are joint presidents of the charity, a role the couple holds alongside Princess Alexandra, the Honourable Lady Ogilvy.

Kate Middleton attends Cancer Research U.K. reception on June 2, 2026.Yui Mok – Pool/Getty

Cancer Research U.K. is a leading charity that researches over 200 types of cancer and has helped transform how the disease is understood, detected, treated and prevented over the last 125 years. Its efforts have contributed to a doubling of cancer survival in the U.K. over the past 50 years, and eight in 10 people today who receive cancer drugs across the U.K. receive drugs developed by or with the organization.

SOURCE: https://people.com/kate-middleton-king-charles-unite-first-cancer-focused-outing-since-revealing-diagnoses-2024-11988792