King Charles reveals his cancer treatment will be scaled back as he credits early diagnosis

Britain’s King Charles III has revealed that his cancer treatment will soon be scaled back, crediting an “early diagnosis, effective intervention and adherence to doctors’ orders” for an improvement in his condition.

“This milestone is both a personal blessing and a testimony to the remarkable advances that have been made in cancer care,” Charles said in a televised message that aired Friday in support of the Stand Up to Cancer charity campaign.

Buckingham Palace did not say whether his cancer is in remission, but a palace spokesperson said in a briefing provided to NBC News before the broadcast that Charles had “responded exceptionally well” to treatment and that ongoing measures “will now move into a precautionary phase.”

“This position will be continuously monitored and reviewed to protect and prioritise his continued recovery,” the spokesperson added.

The king disclosed his cancer diagnosis in February 2024, less than 18 months after taking the throne.

“I know from my own experience that a cancer diagnosis can feel overwhelming,” he said in his address Friday, adding that he had been “profoundly moved by what I can only call the ‘community of care’ that surrounds every cancer patient.”

Charles has never disclosed the details of his diagnosis, including what type of cancer he has or the stage of the disease.

The palace said he would not do so, citing “advice from cancer experts” that “it is preferable that His Majesty does not address his own specific condition but rather speaks to those affected by all forms of the disease.”

Charles resumed some public duties two months after the diagnosis was revealed.

He spent a “short period” in the hospital in March because of side effects from cancer treatment, Buckingham Palace said at the time, without detailing how long he had been there or the nature of the treatment.

But he has made frequent public appearances this year as his treatment continued, hosting President Donald Trump on his second state visit to the U.K. in September.

He also embarked on overseas trips within Europe, marking Holocaust Memorial Day at Auschwitz-Birkenau in January, and praying with Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican in October. Queen Elizabeth II, who died in 2022, avoided overseas travel during her last years on the throne, because of her advancing age and a series of health scares.

The palace spokesperson said that Charles had “taken great comfort and encouragement from being able to continue leading a full and active life throughout his treatment,” continuing with public engagements and overseas tours.

Questions over the health of a monarch would usually be top of the royal news agenda, but Charles has spent the past few months grappling with a public storm surrounding his younger brother, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly known as Prince Andrew.

Charles stripped Andrew of his royal titles in October after fresh questions over his association with the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.