In early 2024, the question on everyone's lips was "Where is Princess Kate?" The Princess of Wales announced she was undergoing a planned abdominal surgery in January, but as the weeks went on, her disappearance from public life raised questions (and attacks on the princess) on social media and in the press. As a royal editor, you can guarantee every time I went to a social gathering the first thing someone asked me was about Kate and whether she was alive/suffering from an eating disorder/some other wild conspiracy theory.
In March 2024, the Princess of Wales announced she'd been diagnosed with cancer, but her heartfelt video didn't put all of the vicious rumors to rest. In its latest issue, People magazine spoke to royal experts about how Princess Kate has recovered from her most challenging year yet.
Historian Amanda Foreman told the outlet that Kate "is someone who stared down the abyss" as she received cancer treatment. "She didn’t just face a life-threatening illness —the global Internet went after her," she continued. "It was a character assassination."
While speaking about her recovery, the Princess of Wales has credited the support of her family and getting into nature as beneficial while she faced months of chemotherapy.
"She has that steeliness and that tremendous charm and that smile," Foreman told People of Princess Kate. "It’s the combination of a willingness to show vulnerability but at the same time not being vulnerable."
Whether it's greeting global leaders during state visits or attending events for causes close to their heart, both William and Kate have been stepping up into prominent roles as they eye a future as King and Queen.
The Princess of Wales "is in this confident phase where she is able to define who she is, what she does and how much she does," biographer Catherine Mayer said. "In that sense, she’s approaching her prime."
Although she was recovering at home for the majority of 2024 and pulled out of several events in the past year, such as Royal Ascot, the Princess of Wales has increasingly picked up her workload in the later half of 2025.
However, with three young children at home, Princess Kate is careful to balance duties with parenting, such as when she skipped the 2025 Earthshot Prize in Brazil to be home with Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.
"Now that [Kate] has begun to turn a corner, they will be deploying her as much as they can," royal expert Sally Bedell Smith said of the Royal Family, adding that it was "important" for the future King William and Queen Catherine "to be at the center of the action.”
