King Charles will be hospitalized next week to treat an enlarged prostate, Buckingham Palace announced Wednesday, hours after they announced the Princess of Wales was hospitalized for abdominal surgery.
King Charles’ procedure will treat an enlarged prostate.
Aaron Chown/Pool Photo via AP
Key Facts
King Charles, 75, will undergo a “corrective procedure” for a benign enlarged prostate, Buckingham Palace said.
While he recovers, his public engagements will be postponed, the palace said.
In their statement, the palace noted thousands of men seek treatment for enlarged prostates each year.
Earlier on Wednesday, the palace announced the Princess of Wales Catherine, who is Charles’ daughter-in-law, underwent abdominal surgery and would be hospitalized for up to two weeks as she recovers from the planned procedure.
It’s unclear exactly what prompted the Princess of Wales’ procedure or what the procedure was, but a spokesperson from the palace told reporters it is not a “cancerous issue.”
The Princess of Wales, 42, will return to her official duties after Easter, the palace said.
Tangent
The announcements, particularly their release on the same day, were out of the ordinary for the palace, which usually stays mum when it comes to discussing the health of the royal family. When Queen Elizabeth II died in 2022 the official cause of death was “old age.” When Prince Philip died the year before, he was also said to have died from “old age.” Before he passed, the palace did publicly report the prince’s hospitalizations including for a bladder infection, exploratory abdominal surgery and hip replacement surgery.
Key Background
The palace was right when it said enlarged prostates are a common issue. Harvard Medical School notes that by age 60 half of all men will have an enlarged prostate. That diagnosis reaches near certainty, 90%, when men reach age 85. Symptoms of enlarged prostates include a weak urine system, painful urination, bloody urine and other effects on urinating, according to Penn Medicine. Enlarged prostates are commonly treated with medication such as alpha blockers, but symptoms can also be treated surgically by removing the excess tissue from the prostate, according to Howard LeWine, chief medical editor at Harvard Health Publishing
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