LONDON, March 24, 2024 (BSS/AFP) - After weeks of wild speculation, British
people on Saturday digested the shock news that Catherine, Princess of Wales,
has cancer, many praising her courage.

Others criticised the conspiracies that spread over her absence.

Catherine revealed the news in a highly personal video released Friday, just
weeks after King Charles III said he too is battling cancer.

The candid disclosure leaves the British monarchy in crisis with two of its
most senior members simultaneously fighting serious illness.

Charles -- 17 months into his reign when Buckingham Palace announced in
February he would be cancelling all public engagements -- led tributes to his
"beloved daughter-in-law".

The ailing 75-year-old monarch spoke of his pride in "her courage in speaking
as she did".

Following other warm words from Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and the White
House, British newspapers hailed the courage of the 42-year-old wife of
Prince William, heir to the throne.

"Kate, you are not alone" read the front of The Sun. The tabloid said it was
"hugely comforting" to hear Kate say she was getting stronger.

"Perhaps the world will now appreciate why so much secrecy surrounded her
surgery in January," it added.

The Daily Mail tabloid denounced the "social media trolls who have been
peddling disgusting conspiracy theories to explain her absence from public
life."

- 'Privacy' demand -

Outside Kensington Palace in London, Nathaniel Taylor, a 24-year-old
government worker, said: "I think it's really damning what happened to them,
what the media has done, how they've reacted over these past couple of
months.

"I think some speculation is inevitable but the lengths people were going to
try and make things up it's just (too much). Hopefully people take a look in
the mirror."

At Tower Bridge, Sofia, a 19-year-old student who did not give her family
name, said she had seen "weird accusations" about the absence and that the
true reason was "sad".

"Obviously it was a much (more) serious matter", she said.

In her statement, Kate, as the princess is widely known, admitted the
diagnosis was a "huge shock" and asked for "time, space and privacy" as she
completes chemotherapy.

In the video -- recorded Wednesday in Windsor, west of London, where the
future queen and king live with their three young children -- she insisted
she was "well".

She said it had taken them time to explain the situation to Prince George,
aged 10, Princess Charlotte, eight, and five-year-old Prince Louis, "and to
reassure them that I am going to be OK".

"William and I have been doing everything we can to process and manage this
privately for the sake of our young family," Kate added.

Commentators commended the frank nature of the video, which showed the
princess speaking directly to the camera while sitting on a garden bench.

"So many people will have been so moved by the way that she conducted herself
during that two minute plus broadcast," royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams
told AFP.

"But there's no doubt at all that it's a very, very difficult time for the
institution of monarchy," he added.

- Royal health woes -

Buckingham Palace announced on February 5 that tests had identified Charles
had "a form of cancer" without giving further details.

He has cancelled all public engagements except audiences with the prime
minister and ambassadors, and worked on official papers while receiving
treatment.

He has been photographed several times since then, and seen attending church.

Kate was last seen at a public engagement on December 25.

Kensington Palace announced on January 17 that she faced up to two weeks in
hospital and several months' recuperation following abdominal surgery.

She was not expected to be ready to return to public duties until after
Easter on March 31, a statement at the time said.

- 'Doing their best' -

But Kate disclosed tests after the operation "found cancer had been present"
and that she was now undergoing "preventative chemotherapy".

Kensington Palace said she would return to official duties "when she is
cleared to do so by her medical team".

"Preventive chemotherapy after surgery is given to reduce the risk of the
cancer coming back in the future," Andrew Beggs, a senior clinical fellow and
consultant colorectal surgeon at the University of Birmingham, said.

He added it was "a bit like mopping a floor with bleach when you've spilt
something on it," noting chemotherapy "kills any spilt cells".

In the meantime, the royal family is facing a staffing crisis with two
members facing serious health duties and others stepping back from frontline
duties.

William's younger brother Harry and wife Meghan quit the royal frontline in
2020 and now live in the US, largely estranged from the family following the
acrimonious split.

The king's remaining brother Andrew is also out of commission, stepping down
from royal duties in 2019 after a disastrous television interview in which he
defended his friendship with the late US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.