The Princess of Wales paid an unannounced visit to a remembrance garden that raises money for a cancer charity – and left a poignant message to those who have been touched by the disease
The Princess of Wales made a surprise visit to a remembrance garden that raises money for a cancer charity – and left an emotional note. Kate, 43, who underwent chemotherapy after a cancer diagnosis last year, visited the Ever After Garden in Chelsea, which has been raising money for the Royal Marsden Cancer Charity.
The Royal Marsden Hospital was where Kate received her treatment, and after a visit to the hospital at the beginning of the year, she revealed she is now in remission. The princess’s visit to the garden only came to light when the official Prince and Princess of Wales social media channels posted footage of her stopping by.
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The central London garden features 30,000 illuminated white roses, with visitors encouraged to make a donation and dedicate a rose to a loved one. Since it was founded in 2019, £1.6 million has been raised for the Royal Marsden Cancer Charity.
During her visit, Kate dedicated a rose and spoke to some of the volunteers. And a note that Kate nestled in the grass next to the roses was revealed, with her poignantly writing: “In loving memory of all those who have lost their lives to cancer – C.”
In a longer statement on social media, she posted alongside a video of her visit, she said: “Thank you to all those who have contributed to the Ever After Garden, which raises vital funds for The Royal Marsden Cancer Charity. Every flower, every light, is a memory held together, an illumination of shared love, remembrance, and hope.”
News of Kate’s visit to the garden came just hours after the King announced his cancer treatment would be reduced in the new year in a personal message on Channel 4’s Stand Up To Cancer.
Charles has been receiving cancer treatment as an outpatient since early February 2024, believed to be weekly visits to the London Clinic, but these sessions are to be significantly cut back.
Meanwhile, Kate has been gradually returning to full-time duties following her treatment last year. Back in July, she spoke of the pressure of putting on a “brave face” through cancer treatment and recovery, where “everybody expects you to be better, but that’s not the case at all”.
She said, the “very scary, very daunting experience” did not end with the conclusion of treatment, with patients needing to take time to find their “new normal”.
The deeply personal words from the princess came as she met fellow patients at a cancer wellbeing centre at Colchester Hospital, helping to plant roses in a garden designed to help visitors find peace.
She repeatedly emphasised the importance of patients and their families being able to find support through their illness, saying it was too often difficult to reach. Speaking to patients and volunteers inside the centre, she said: “There is a whole phase when you finish your treatment, everybody expects you to be better – go! But that’s not the case at all.”
She said: “You put on a sort of brave face, stoicism through treatment. Treatment’s done, then it’s like ’I can crack on, get back to normal’ but actually the phase afterwards is really difficult. You’re not necessarily under the clinical team any longer but you’re not able to function normally at home as you perhaps once used to.
“And actually someone to help talk you through that, show you and guide you through that sort of phase that comes after treatment I think is really valuable.
