King Charles III, recovering well from cancer, to return to work, Buckingham Palace announces

Warsaw: King Charles III will return to full duties in coming days just 10 weeks after his shock cancer diagnosis, as Buckingham Palace moves to reassure the public the monarch is recovering well amid a horror start to the year for the royal family.

In a statement released at 3am Australian time, the palace said the 75-year-old would mark his return after a period of treatment and recuperation with a visit to a cancer treatment centre next Tuesday, where he and Queen Camilla would meet medical specialists and patients.

A spokesperson said it was still “too early” to say how successful the king’s treatment had been, but his medical team was “very encouraged” by the progress made so far and remained positive about his continued recovery.

Charles’ return to public duties will lift hopes of a potential visit to Australia in late October or early November – his first since becoming king – with the palace confirming that planning was continuing for the couple’s summer and autumn engagements, while stressing “nothing can be confirmed or guaranteed at this stage”.

The royal family rallied around Charles since his shock cancer diagnosis was made public on February 6 – only 16 months after acceding to the throne – after he underwent a hospital procedure for a benign prostate enlargement revealed a second, more serious medical problem.

His daughter-in-law, Catherine, Princess of Wales, was hospitalised around the same time for planned stomach surgery and was also subsequently diagnosed with an unknown form of cancer.

The palace has struggled to combat wild speculation on social media about both their prognosis but has been more open about their health challenge than any previous family members.

The King has undergone regular treatment at a London hospital, but has not revealed what type of cancer he has, other than confirming it is not prostate cancer. He has taken time away from public engagements to minimise the risk to his health.