Cancer and The Crown

People around the world were shocked by both the cancer diagnoses of His Majesty King Charles III and that of Her Royal Highness Catherine, The Princess of Wales. While prayers and well wishes have poured in for the pair, many are still unaware of the British Royal Family's long history with cancer. 

Queen Mary

Queen Mary (formerly Princess Victoria Mary of Teck and commonly known as Mary of Teck) was queen consort of the UK from 1910 until the death of her husband King George V in 1936. She became the Queen Mother thereafter. Although she outlived her son, King George VI, Queen Mary sucummed to lung cancer at the age of 85 in March 1953.

King George VI

King George VI  battled the same disease as his mother, Queen Mary. It is reported that The King was diagnosed with lung cancer in 1951. He died 13 months before Queen Mary, in February 1952 at the age of 56. An official statment published after his death stated the father of Queen Elizabeth II and Princess Margaret had died a of a coronoary thormbosis. His Majesty was a heavy smoker and many have speculated that his actual cause of death was metastatic lung cancer. 

Prince Edward, The Duke of Windsor

Queen Mary and King George VI weren't the only members of their immediate family to have had cancer. Prince Edward, The Duke of Windsor (also known as for a short time as King Edward VIII) died in Paris, France on May 28, 1972 of laryngeal cancer. He was 77 and had also been a heavy smoker like his brother King George. It's been reported that The Duke was diagnosed with the cancer a year prior to his passing. 

Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother

Queen Elizabeth, wife of King George VI and mother of Queen Elizabeth II and Princess Margaret, battled two types of cancer in her 101 years of life. She learned she had colon cancer in 1966 and breast cancer in 1984. Most of the details have been kept private, but it is now know that she had surgeries and tumors removed for both diagnoses. Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother died of natural causes/old age on March 30, 2002. 

Prince Michael of Kent

Prince Michael of Kent, first cousin of Queen Elizabeth II, was successfully treated for prostate cancer in 2014. Nothing else is known about his diagnosis and treatment. Prince Michael, now 81, lives at Kensington Palace with his wife Princess Michael of Kent (Marie-Christine), is an active Freemason, grandfather of two, and continues to represent the British Royal Family in an official capacity. 

Princess Michael of Kent

When Prince Michael of Kent married Baroness Marie-Christine Ann Agnes Hedwig Ida von Reibnitin in 1978 she became Princess Michael of Kent. The Princess had a procedure that took a small amount of tissue from her face to remove skin cancer in 2001. She revealed her diagnosis and treatment while touring a hospital while on royal duty in 2002. The Princess has said, "It gave me a bit of fright, but luckily it wasn't serious." The type of skin cancer was not revealed.

Queen Elizabeth II

Queen Elizabeth II kept details about her health scarce during her 70-year reign. She died at Balmoral Castle with her daughter, Her Royal Highness Princess Anne, The Princess Royal, by her side on September 8, 2022 at the age of 96. The cause of death listed on her death cerficiate was old age, as reported by Princess Anne. It was revealed in royal biographer Gyles Brandreth's 2022 book, Elizabeth: An Intimate Portrait that Queen Elizbaeth II had multiple myeloma. In multiple myeloma, cancerous plasma cells build up in the bone marrow and the cancer cells start to crowd out healthy blood cells. It is known to be a very manageable cancer, but can cause bone pain, which may have been the cause of Queen Elizabeth's widely known "mobility issues."

Sarah, The Duchess of York

Sarah Ferguson (also known by her nickname Fergie) became The Duchess of York when she married Prince Andrew, the third child and second son of Queen Elizabeth II, in July 1986. Despite their divorce in 1996, she retained her Duchess title. In June 2023, at the age of 63, The Duchess of York announced that she had been diagnosed with breast cancer through a routine mammogram. She under went a mastectomy and, later, reconstructive surgery. In January 2024, Fergie revealed a second cancer diagnosis. She said it was shock to receive the diagnosis of melanoma, a malignant form of skin cancer, less than a year after after her breast cancer news. The Duchess of York is an author and film producer and continues her charity work today. 

Princess Victoria, King Edward VII, and Fredrick III, German Emperor 

Princess Victoria, daughter of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, died in June 1901 of breast cancer at the age of 60. Her husband, Frederick III, German Emperor died of laryngeal cancer. Her brother, King Edward VII, had basal cell carcinoma removed near his nose and was cured with radium.