Princess Kate’s aleternative therapy she tried as part of cancer healing journey
The Princess of Wales shared the details of the traditional Chinese medical practice she incorporated into her healing journey from cancer while speaking with staff and patients at Colchester Hospital last year
Kate talks about her recovery during a visit to Colchester Hospital (Image: PA)
The Princess of Wales beamed as she joined the rest of the Royal Family for a special church service to celebrate Easter for the first time since 2023.
It marked a huge contrast from 2024, when the Kate, William and their children were not at the traditional Easter Sunday service, with the princess having just revealed her cancer diagnosis to the world. This time last year, her treatment had finished and she revealed that she was in remission. And shortly after, during a visit to a hospital, she revealed the holistic practice she tried as aprt of her cancer journey.
Kate revealed she has tried acupuncture during a hospital visit last year(Image: Toby Shepheard / Kensington Palace)
While meeting patients at Colchester Hospital, she spoke candidly about her illness with staff and patients. During the conversation, Kate shared that she had utilised elements of traditional Chinese medicine during her cancer journey, particularly acupuncture, to help her healing process.
The Princess spoke of the individuality of cancer and how patients handle their diagnosis and treatment in tailored ways, saying: “What seems to be really fantastic is that there is a real personal approach: what helps one person – acupuncture or something – might not help another.”
According to the Mayo Clinic, acupuncture is a key aspect of traditional Chinese medicine, in which thin needles are inserted at strategic points across the body, helping to treat pain, boost general wellness, and manage stress.
While speaking with patients and staff at the Colchester Hospital, Princess Kate spoke about her gradual return to duties after her cancer battle and the readjustment back into her royal role after time away.
Speaking inside the centre, which provides therapy, community groups and holistic treatments including reflexology, she said: “There is a whole phase when you finish your treatment, everybody expects you to be better – go! But that’s not the case at all.”
The Princess of Wales on a visit to the RHS’s Wellbeing Garden at Colchester Hospital last July (Image: PA)
She said: “You put on a sort of brave face, stoicism through treatment. Treatment’s done, then it’s like ‘I can crack on, get back to normal’ but actually the phase afterwards is really difficult. You’re not necessarily under the clinical team any longer but you’re not able to function normally at home as you perhaps once used to.
“And actually someone to help talk you through that, show you and guide you through that sort of phase that comes after treatment I think is really valuable.” She added: “You have to find your new normal and that takes time.”
The discussions were the princess’s most personal and extensive insight into her own battle with cancer to date, seeing her reference her own ill health several times while emphasising with patients and families.
Kate planted a rose in the hospital’s wellbeing garden (Image: PA)
“It’s life changing for anyone,” she said. “Through first diagnosis or post treatment and things like that, it is a life-changing experience both for the patient but also for the families as well. And actually it sometimes goes unrecognised, you don’t necessarily, particularly when it’s the first time [of diagnosis], appreciate how much impact it is going to have.
“You have to find your new normal and that takes time…and it’s a rollercoaster, it’s not one smooth plane, which you expect it to be. But the reality is it’s not, you go through hard times.”
