Britain’s King Charles III was admitted to a London hospital on Friday morning ahead of a corrective procedure for an enlarged prostate.
Buckingham Palace said in a statement that the 75-year-old monarch had arrived at the facility for his “scheduled treatment.”
“His Majesty would like to thank all those who have sent their good wishes over the past week and is delighted to learn that his diagnosis is having a positive impact on public health awareness,” it added.
The palace revealed last week that the king was set to undergo treatment and said that his condition was “benign.”
Charles arrived at The London Clinic, a private healthcare facility near Regent’s Park, accompanied by his wife, Queen Camilla, the UK’s PA Media news agency reported. It is the same hospital where his daughter-in-law, Catherine, Princess of Wales remains following her abdominal surgery last week.
The king will postpone engagements for a short period while he recuperates after leaving hospital.
Specific medical conditions of members of the royal family are rarely divulged publicly. The palace’s perspective is that they are entitled to some level of medical privacy despite their positions as public servants.
And it would appear his approach worked. There was a surge in men seeing if they are at risk of prostate cancer, according to figures from NHS England.
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Visits to its “enlarged prostate” webpage – which provides information on causes, symptoms and treatment options – saw traffic surge more than 1,000% above its daily average after the palace’s announcement.
It received 16,410 visits on the day of the announcement, compared to 1,414 visits the day before, according to the organization.
Prostate Cancer UK also said the number of individuals using its online risk checker had jumped 97%. The charity praised the monarch “for his openness that’ll inevitably raise more awareness about the condition.”
This is a developing story and will be updated.