Prince William at Kate’s side after ‘successful’ operation

The Prince of Wales will cancel all engagements while the princess recovers from abdominal surgery at the London Clinic.

Prince William drove to the London Clinic to see his wife. Picture: Max Mumby/The Times

The Prince of Wales was at his wife’s side in hospital when she began her recuperation after planned abdominal surgery.

The Princess of Wales, 42, was admitted to the London Clinic on Tuesday for the operation, which Palace aides described as a “success” on Thursday.

Prince William, 41, has said that he will cancel all engagements during her time in hospital, which could last up to a fortnight, and scale back his work in the coming months to support Kate’s recovery at home.

Plans for trips to a NATO base in Latvia and a visit to the Vatican are due to be rescheduled.

The King, 75, had been due to host a series of meetings with cabinet ministers and foreign dignitaries at Dumfries House on Friday but has cancelled the events on advice from his doctors, and will go into hospital next week for a procedure to treat a benign enlarged prostate.

On Thursday, Charles was resting at Birkhall, his home on the Balmoral estate.

Both the princess and the King’s conditions are understood to be non-cancerous.

Two senior members of the royal family – the Queen and the Duchess of Edinburgh – have maintained a “business as usual” front. When asked about the King’s health by the lord provost during a visit to Aberdeen, the Queen replied: “He’s fine, thank you very much. Looking forward to getting back to work.”

Looking relaxed and cheerful despite having what she described as “quite a frosty journey”, Camilla visited a “safe space” in Aberdeen Art Gallery designed to help people who suspect someone they know is suffering domestic abuse.

The Queen visited an art gallery in Aberdeen. Picture: Pool/Getty Images

Similarly, the Duchess of Edinburgh was happy to celebrate her birthday early at a visit to community projects in Walton-on-Thames, Surrey. At Walton Charity and Elmbridge Mencap, Sophie was told that community groups had tried to fill 20 Minis with donations for a local food bank. She planted a tree and played table football before dancing when people sang a rousing Happy Birthday to mark her 59th birthday on Saturday.

But in the coming months there will be far fewer public engagements for senior working members of the royal family as ill health and recovery time take their toll.

One of the reasons the King was keen to give details of his forthcoming prostate procedure was, the Palace said, to reduce the stigma around the subject and raise awareness of the condition, which commonly affects men over 50.

On Wednesday, when the King’s news was announced, NHS England officials reported a significant rise in online searches for “enlarged prostate” and the health service’s dedicated webpage received more than ten times its usual traffic: 16,410 visits, compared with Tuesday’s 1414.

One in every three men over the age of 50 will experience the symptoms of an enlarged prostate, which include needing to visit the lavatory more frequently and with more urgency, and having difficulty emptying the bladder.

Ian Eardley, a consultant urological surgeon in Leeds and national clinical director for NHS England, said: “It’s very, very common at [75 and above]. About half of them will have symptoms and, broadly speaking, about half of them will become bothered to some extent by those symptoms.

“To some extent it is an inevitable part of ageing for just about all men.”

Asked whether the announcement would lead to more people seeking help, Eardley said: “The nature of these things is that if it becomes public knowledge it will lead to more men seeking help. That’s a good thing.

“The majority of men do not need an operation, they just need to be checked out, and they will often have their symptoms improved considerably by taking one pill or two pills - something that a GP can manage quite straightforwardly.”

The Times