Kate Middleton detail that now makes no sense after cancer revelation

The mystery surrounding Kate is solved with news that she’s been privately battling cancer. But there’s one thing now that doesn’t make any sense.

Kate Middleton has cancer.

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After months of baffling behaviour and practically radio silence from Kensington Palace, everything now finally makes sense.

The online frenzy, fuelled by increasingly unhinged conspiracy theories, has been abruptly silenced by the shocking news that the Princess of Wales, 42, is battling cancer.

The announcement is the final piece of the puzzle, answering all the questions bouncing around the globe in recent weeks, such as why we’d heard nothing about her recovery, why there was still no official “return to work date” set, and – significantly – why William suddenly pulled out of delivering a reading at his own godfather’s memorial service in late February. The answer, we now know, is that he was dealing with the devastating news of his wife’s diagnosis.

Kate shared her diagnosis with a personal video.

Yes, that certainly explains that. But the revelation that the Palace has been (very rightfully) protecting the princess’ deserved privacy this whole time now throws up one huge new question.

Why in the world did they let her take the fall for the Photoshop blunder last week?
Why would she have been exposed to the mass public mockery and criticism that instantly followed, knowing what she was going through behind the scenes?

The family portrait, featuring Kate, George, 10, Charlotte, 8, and Louis, 5, was released by the Palace on Mother’s Day – but was quickly ripped apart by eagle-eyed royal watchers, who noticed multiple discrepancies.

Just hours later, the world’s biggest photo agencies issued a mandatory “kill notice” on the picture, claiming it had been digitally “manipulated” by the “source”, sending the rumour mill into overdrive.

The picture sparked widespread conspiracies.

As the backlash and speculation grew, Kate took the extraordinary step of issuing a personal statement, owning the error, and apologising for any “confusion”.

The controversy, and particularly the princess’ apparent involvement, sparked a flood of internet memes, largely at Kate’s expense.

At its heart, it was a massive blow to the royals’ perceived authenticity, and the future queen had been identified as its architect.

Earlier this week, even before the cancer diagnosis was made public, veteran royal biographer Robert Jobson criticised the Palace for its handling of the snafu.

“I don’t think Kate should have taken responsibility (for the picture) the way she did,” said Jobson.

“She’s recuperating at home from serious surgery and the communications team should have made sure that (picture) was checked before they issued it as an official photograph.”

Everyone from US talk show host Stephen Colbert to Kim Kardashian has weighed in on the saga – and Kate’s apology put her right at the centre of the blame.

Given what we know now, that seems an unfathomable decision from the Palace powers-that-be.

In Kate’s own words, delivered via a video message on Friday night, UK time, it has been “an incredible tough couple of months” for her and the royal family.

Being the punchline to an internet joke, shared millions of times around the world, certainly can’t have helped.

At least now, with the rumours firmly put to bed and public sympathy back on her side, Kate will regain the privacy she needs during this immensely challenging time.

Originally published as Kate Middleton detail that now makes no sense after cancer revelation