Kate Middleton was said to be “doing well” Wednesday, after undergoing abdominal surgery Tuesday.
A report in the London Times quoted “palace sources” as saying that the surgery had been successful and that the Princess of Wales “is doing well.”
Her hospitalization was announced, on a day of extraordinary royal medical drama, just 90 minutes before the office of King Charles revealed that he was going into hospital too, for a procedure on an enlarged prostate.
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The king apparently was told of the need for the procedure today (Wednesday), having had a medical check-up earlier in the week. He then at short notice also canceled a raft of engagements as he prepares for the procedure, due to take place next week.
While Charles made a dramatic break with precedent by giving details of exactly what was wrong with him—benign prostate enlargement that requires a “corrective” procedure—to encourage other men to get treatment, Kate sought, at first, to stick to the traditional royal way of doing things by revealing as little as possible about her condition.
A statement from Kensington Palace read: “The surgery was successful, and it is expected that she will remain in hospital for 10 to 14 days, before returning home to continue her recovery. Based on the current medical advice, she is unlikely to return to public duties until after Easter.
“The Princess of Wales appreciates the interest this statement will generate. She hopes that the public will understand her desire to maintain as much normality for her children as possible; and her wish that her personal medical information remains private," the statement continued. "Kensington Palace will, therefore, only provide updates on Her Royal Highness’ progress when there is significant new information to share.”
The information vacuum was swiftly filled by wild speculation on social media, with keyboard medics particularly keen on diagnosing a case of plastic surgery.
The torrent of completely uninformed speculation was fueled by the alarming details that the palace did provide: that Kate would be in hospital for 10-14 days, that all her engagements up until Easter and possibly beyond were now canceled, that foreign travel was off the cards, and that husband Prince William was canceling engagements too, to be by her side.
It’s hard to know exactly what has been canceled for either William or Kate, as the palace is no longer in the habit of publishing future engagements.
The choice of words, “abdominal surgery” was, no doubt, deliberately ambiguous (in marked contrast to the king’s announcement) but has, predictably, triggered a tsunami of speculation.
The health editor of the London Times, for example, noted: “Abdominal surgery may mean the stomach, appendix, kidneys or bowel, or the reproductive system.”
The Telegraph said that aides “would not say whether it was something that might affect her in the longer term or have longer term repercussions.”
If the palace had hoped to avoid a sense of frenzy and panic by saying the operation was “planned,” the strategy didn’t seem to work; just last week, some noted, plans were being laid for Kate and William to visit Italy. Then reporters suddenly realized that Kate hadn’t been seen in public since Christmas Day, when she appeared to be radiating health and happiness, so whatever had happened had clearly happened fast.
The palace, which had insisted it would not be providing any further information about Kate’s private medical details, swiftly reversed course, with courtiers telling the media that Kate’s condition was not cancer.
A fellow parent at Lambrook School, which the Wales children attend, told the Daily Beast, “I suddenly realized when I saw the news that I haven’t actually seen Kate doing the school run this term, which she usually does, but as the children only started back a week ago, it’s not surprising nobody noticed.”
Representatives of the world’s media have already descended upon the private London Clinic awaiting updates on her condition, and it seems hard to imagine that the royals’ policy of saying nothing about her health can last throughout three months of recuperation and invisibility.
Indeed, the Telegraph reported that Kensington Palace “has not ruled out more details about the princess’s surgery being revealed in due course,” adding that “as and when [Kate] is ready to talk about it, she may opt to do so.”
