King Charles III’s brief hospital stay reminds UK that monarch is still a cancer patient

LONDON (AP) — King Charles III waved to well-wishers in central London on Friday as he headed for his country estate in western England a day after he was briefly hospitalized because of side effects from a scheduled cancer treatment.

Charles canceled planned engagements on Thursday afternoon and Friday on the advice of his doctors, Buckingham Palace said, without providing details about the “temporary side effects” that he experienced.

But the episode was a reminder that the king is 76 and continues to undergo treatment for an undisclosed form of cancer diagnosed more than a year ago.

That reality has slipped away from the collective consciousness since last spring, when Charles returned to public duties after stepping away for almost three months to focus on his initial treatment and recovery. In the intervening months, he has attended D-Day commemoration events in France, presided over the State Opening of Parliament and even embarked on a nine-day visit to Australia and Samoa.

But during the early stages of his treatment, Charles continued fulfilling his constitutional duties as head of state, including reviewing government papers and meeting with the prime minister.

Here’s a brief rundown of what we know about the king’s health.

The king went to the London Clinic on Thursday morning for a scheduled cancer treatment. The clinic is a private hospital in central London, where Charles has been receiving treatment since his diagnosis in February 2024.

“Following scheduled and ongoing medical treatment for cancer this morning, the king experienced temporary side effects that required a short period of observation in hospital,” Buckingham Palace said in a statement. “His majesty’s afternoon engagements were therefore postponed.”

The king then returned to his home at Clarence House, where he reviewed papers and made calls, the palace said. Queen Camilla didn't join him at the hospital.

“His majesty would like to send his apologies to all those who may be inconvenienced or disappointed as a result,” the palace said in a statement.

The king is expected to press ahead with his work in the coming days, including a state visit to Italy scheduled for early April.

Palace officials have recognized that it's better to release some information about the king’s health, rather than allow media speculation to fill the void when he's forced to cancel scheduled events.

But they have tried to walk a fine line, seeking to balance the public’s legitimate interest in the health of the head of state with Charles’ right to privacy.

This was seen first in January 2024, when the palace announced Charles was being treated for an enlarged prostate, followed by the cancer diagnosis a few weeks later.

The decision to talk about the king’s health issues marked a departure from past palace protocols. For example, when Queen Elizabeth II began missing events toward the end of her life, royal officials repeatedly said that she was suffering from “mobility issues,” without providing further details. Her death certificate listed the cause as “old age.”

The public was unaware that Charles’ grandfather, King George VI, had lung cancer before his death in February 1952 at the age of 56. Some historians suggest that even the king wasn't told about the gravity of his condition.

Health authorities have applauded the king’s openness, saying his disclosures saved lives by encouraging thousands of men to have prostate exams.

Royal experts say Charles’ candor has also brought him closer to the public by demonstrating that he faces the same kinds of challenges that they do. Health is, after all, the great leveler.

Charles’ busy schedule is a reminder that this is a man who waited around seven decades to become monarch and he wants to make the most of it.

The king has been open about his desire to demonstrate that the monarchy still has a role to play as a symbol of unity and tradition in the sometimes fractious, multicultural nation that is 21st-century Britain.

And the job of a modern king is to take part in a whirl of public events, from the pageantry of state occasions when he wears the crown and rides through the streets of London in a horse-drawn carriage to more mundane appearances such as opening public buildings or handing out awards for public service.

Charles took part in 372 public engagements last year, even after stepping aside for almost three months because of cancer treatment, according to data compiled by The Times of London newspaper. That made him the second-busiest royal behind his sister, Princes Anne, who had 474 engagements.

Charles has long been known as a workaholic, and Queen Camilla said last year that he “won’t slow down and won’t do what he’s told.” During her Reading Room literary festival in July, the queen told author Lee Child that her husband was “doing fine,” but hadn’t heeded her advice to curtail his schedule.

Prince Harry once said that his father worked so hard that he would fall asleep at his desk and wake up with bits of paper stuck to his face.

The king’s busy schedule has obscured the fact that he is an older man with cancer, said Robert Hardman, author of "Charles III: New King, New Court, the Inside Story."

“We’ve seen him go back to normal,” Hardman told the BBC on Friday.

“I think this is sort of a reminder that this is a head of state undergoing treatment for cancer, because I think a lot of us tended to forget it."

Media reports live from Buckingham Palace in London, Friday, March 28, 2025, after the Palace said King Charles III was hospitalized for observation on Thursday, experiencing "temporary side effects,'' related to a scheduled cancer treatment. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Members of the Household Cavalry march into the entrance to Clarence House in London, Friday, March 28, 2025, after Buckingham Palace said King Charles III was hospitalized for observation on Thursday, experiencing "temporary side effects,'' related to a scheduled cancer treatment. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Tourists stand at the entrance to Clarence House that serves as the London residence of King Charles III and Queen Camilla, in London, Friday, March 28, 2025 after Buckingham Palace says King Charles III was hospitalized for observation on Thursday after experiencing "temporary side effects,'' related to a scheduled cancer treatment. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

Mounted soldiers during the Changing of the Guard ceremony in London, Friday, March 28, 2025 after Buckingham Palace says King Charles III was hospitalized for observation on Thursday after experiencing "temporary side effects,'' related to a scheduled cancer treatment. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Tourists stand in the rain at Buckingham Palace in London, Friday, March 28, 2025, after the Palace said King Charles III was hospitalized for observation on Thursday, experiencing "temporary side effects,'' related to a scheduled cancer treatment. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Britain's King Charles III is driven by car from Clarence House, his London home, along The Mall towards Buckingham Palace in London, Friday, March 28, 2025. (Ben Whitley/PA via AP)

A man takes a picture of Buckingham Palace in London, Friday, March 28, 2025, after the Palace said King Charles III was hospitalized for observation on Thursday, experiencing "temporary side effects,'' related to a scheduled cancer treatment. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Britain's King Charles III is driven by car from Clarence House, his London home, along The Mall towards Buckingham Palace in London, Friday, March 28, 2025. (Yui Mok/PA via AP)

Britain's King Charles III is driven by car from Clarence House, his London home, along The Mall towards Buckingham Palace in London, Friday, March 28, 2025. (Yui Mok/PA via AP)

Britain's King Charles III is driven by car from Clarence House, his London home, along The Mall towards Buckingham Palace in London, Friday, March 28, 2025. (Ben Whitley/PA via AP)

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Days of unrelenting downpours swelled rivers to near record levels across Kentucky on Monday, submerging neighborhoods and threatening a famed bourbon distillery in the state capital.

Inundated rivers posed the latest threat from persistent storms that have killed at least 23 people — 10 in Tennessee — since last week as they doused the region with heavy rain and spawned destructive tornadoes. Though the storms have finally moved on, the flood danger likewise remains high in several other states, including parts of Tennessee, Arkansas and Indiana.

Cities ordered evacuations and rescue crews in inflatable boats checked on residents in Kentucky and Tennessee, while utilities shut off power and gas in a region stretching from Texas to Ohio. Floodwaters forced the closure of the historic Buffalo Trace Distillery, close to the banks of the swollen Kentucky River near downtown Frankfort, Kentucky.

Salon owner Jessica Tuggle watched Monday as murky brown water approached her Frankfort business. She and her friends had moved her salon gear — styling chairs, hair products and electronics — to a nearby taproom.

“Everybody was just, ‘stop raining, stop raining,’ so we could get an idea of what the worst situation would be,” she said.

Officials diverted traffic and turned off utilities to businesses in Frankfort as the river crested just short of a record Monday. More than 500 state roads across Kentucky were still closed Monday morning, Gov. Andy Beshear said.

Ashley Welsh, her husband, four children and pets had to leave their Frankfort home along the river Saturday evening, abandoning a lifetime of belongings to the floodwaters.

When she checked her house’s cameras Sunday morning, the water had risen to the second floor.

“My stuff was floating around in the living room. I was just heartbroken. Our life is up there,” Welsh said.

Twenty-three deaths have been reported since the storms began Wednesday. Among the four confirmed killed in Kentucky, a 9-year-old boy in Kentucky was caught up in floodwaters while walking to catch his school bus. A 5-year-old boy in Arkansas died after a tree fell on his family’s home, police said. A 16-year-old volunteer Missouri firefighter died in a crash while seeking to rescue people caught in the storm.

A Carroll County, Tennessee, electric department lineman died while working in the storms, state emergency management officials said.

Kentucky State Police said Monday that they recovered the body of a McCracken County man swept away by floodwaters Sunday while trying to retrieve his boat. And Beshear reported the flood-related death of a Trigg County man Monday.

The Arkansas Division of Emergency confirmed the death of a man found by the Sherwood Fire Department in a submerged vehicle.

Two men sitting in a golf cart, a father and son, were killed when a tree fell on them at a golf course in Columbus, Georgia, according to Muscogee County Coroner Buddy Bryan.

The Kentucky River crested at Frankfort Lock at 48.27 feet (14.71 meters) Monday, just shy of the record of 48.5 feet (14.8 meters) set there on Dec. 10, 1978, according to CJ Padgett, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service’s Louisville, Kentucky, office.

Beshear said more than 1,000 people had no access to water and nearly 3,000 were under boil water advisories. The city of Harrodsburg about 30 miles (48 kilometers) south of Frankfort said on social media that its water system had to discontinue pumping around midnight because of flood levels on the Kentucky River. Bottled water was being handed out Monday.

John and Phyllis Sower hunkered down about a half-block from the river in their Frankfort home, which had about 4 feet (122 centimeters) of water in the cellar. A neighbor waded over Monday to bring them flowers on their front porch.

“We are an island in the Kentucky River,” Phyllis Sower said.

In northeastern Arkansas, Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders called the scene “absolutely heartbreaking” around the town of Hardy, which took damage to its city hall and other buildings. Sanders and local officials vowed to rebuild.

West Memphis, Arkansas, Fire Chief Barry Ealy told WREG-TV that crews in the flood-prone city have rescued more than 100 people.

A tornado destroyed more than 100 structures in McNairy County, Tennessee, tearing through the town of Selmer with winds estimated up to 160 mph (257 kph), local emergency management officials said. State officials say severe weather killed five people in the county of roughly 26,100 residents.

Though significant rains have ended in the Southern Plains and the Mississippi, Tennessee and Ohio valleys, flooding on most rivers will persist this week, with some smaller waterways receding in the next few days, according to the weather service.

Forecasters attributed the violent weather to warm temperatures, an unstable atmosphere, strong winds and abundant moisture streaming from the Gulf.

The NWS said 5 inches (13 centimeters) of rain fell Saturday in Jonesboro, Arkansas — making it the wettest day ever recorded in April in the city. Memphis, Tennessee, got 14 inches (35 centimeters) of rain from Wednesday to Sunday, the NWS said.

Marshall County in western Kentucky received nearly 16 inches (41 centimeters) over the last five days, said Padgett, the meteorologist. Parts of central Kentucky received 10 to 12 inches (25 to 30 centimeters) over those days and eastern Kentucky received 6 to 8 inches (15 to 20 centimeters), Padgett said.

The storms come after the Trump administration cut jobs at NWS forecast offices, leaving half of them with vacancy rates of about 20%, or double the level of a decade ago.

Contributing to this report were Associated Press writers Anthony Izaguirre in New York; Kimberlee Kruesi and Jonathan Mattise, in Nashville, Tennessee; Andrew DeMillo in Little Rock, Arkansas; Sarah Brumfield in Cockeysville, Maryland; Rebecca Reynolds in Louisville, Kentucky; Jeff Amy in Atlanta; Adrian Sainz in Memphis; Tennessee; and Obed Lamy in Rives, Tennessee.

In an aerial view, a bourbon barrel floats on the floodwaters of the Buffalo Trace Distillery on Monday, April 7, 2025, in Frankfort, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

In an aerial view, the flooded Buffalo Trace Distillery is seen on Monday, April 7, 2025, in Frankfort, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

A flooded structure is seen on Monday, April 7, 2025, in Frankfort, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

Azariah Boone, of Owenton, Ky, looks out over debris and rising floodwater from the Kentucky River washing up Crittenden Street, Monday, April 7, 2025, in Gratz, Ky. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Water seeps through a flood wall on Monday, April 7, 2025, in Frankfort, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

In an aerial view, the flooded Buffalo Trace Distillery is seen on Monday, April 7, 2025, in Frankfort, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

A mobile home park floods where rising waters of the Little Sugar Creek meet the Ohio River, Monday, April 7, 2025, in Napoleon, Ky. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Buildings in a flooded downtown area are seen on Monday, April 7, 2025, in Frankfort, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

The rising Ohio River floods along Lower River Road, Monday, April 7, 2025, in Rabbit Hash, Ky. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

The Buffalo Trace Distillery in Frankfort, Ky., is seen amid floodwaters on Monday, April 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Kristin M. Hall)

Camp Turn-A-Bout is flooded by the rising Ohio River at the Gunpowder Creek, Monday, April 7, 2025, in Union, Ky. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Camp Turn-A-Bout is flooded by the rising Ohio River at the Gunpowder Creek, Monday, April 7, 2025, in Union, Ky. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Camp Turn-A-Bout is flooded by the rising Ohio River at the Gunpowder Creek, Monday, April 7, 2025, in Union, Ky. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

A boy looks on as people ride a boat down a flooded road on Sunday, April 6, 2025, in Frankfort, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

A Canada goose flies along the rising Ohio River at the flooded Anderson Ferry ramp Monday, April 7, 2025, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Dale Bardes, the oldest resident of Rabbit Hash, Ky., drives on the edge of the rising Ohio River floodwaters as he checks the water levels near the Rabbit Hash General Store on Lower River Road, Monday, April 7, 2025, in Rabbit Hash, Ky. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Dale Bardes, the oldest resident of Rabbit Hash, Ky., drives on the edge of the rising Ohio River floodwaters as he checks the water levels near the Rabbit Hash General Store on Lower River Road, Monday, April 7, 2025, in Rabbit Hash, Ky. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

The rising Ohio River floods along Lower River Road, Monday, April 7, 2025, in Rabbit Hash, Ky. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

The rising Ohio River floods along Lower River Road, Monday, April 7, 2025, in Rabbit Hash, Ky. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

The rising Ohio River floods along Lower River Road, Monday, April 7, 2025, in Rabbit Hash, Ky. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

The rising Ohio River partially submerges the bronze statue of James Bradley along Riverside Drive, Sunday, April 6, 2025, in Covington, Ky. Cincinnati and the John A. Roebling Suspension Bridge are seen across the Ohio River. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

A Canadian goose swims in the rising Ohio River at the intersection of River Riverside Place and Ben Bernstein Place, Sunday, April 6, 2025, in Covington, Ky., across the river from Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Carole Smith walks through her flooded home on Saturday, April 5, 2025, in Frankfort, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

Search and rescue firefighters carry a boat to a flooded neighborhood on Sunday, April 6, 2025, in Frankfort, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

A flooded neighborhood is seen on Sunday, April 6, 2025, in Frankfort, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

Road crews work to clear Lee County Rd. 681 in Saltillo, Miss, Sunday, April 6, 2025, of downed trees that blocked the road following the severe weather that passed through the area Saturday night. (Thomas Wells /The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal via AP)

CORRECTS TO MICHAEL NOT MICHALE Michael Scott Memering looks out of his trailer after evacuating the Licking River RV Campground that was flooded by the rising waters of the Licking River, seen behind, Sunday, April 6, 2025, in Falmouth, Ky. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Bill Jones pulls his boat ashore, filled with bottles of bourbon, from a flooded home near the banks of the Kentucky River on Sunday, April 6, 2025, in Frankfort, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

Search and rescue firefighters conduct wellness checks in a neighborhood on Sunday, April 6, 2025, in Frankfort, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

Abner Wagers stands near flooded homes in the rising waters of the Kentucky River in Monterey, Ky,. Sunday, April 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

The flooded downtown area is seen on Sunday, April 6, 2025, in Frankfort, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

Search and rescue firefighters speak to a resident in a flooded neighborhood on Sunday, April 6, 2025, in Frankfort, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

A group of people survey damage at Pounders Mobile Home Park following a strong line of storms in the area in Muscle Shoals, Ala, Sunday, April 6, 2025. (Dan Busey/The TimesDaily via AP)

Search and rescue firefighters conduct wellness checks in a neighborhood on Sunday, April 6, 2025, in Frankfort, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

Abner Wagers walks in the rising waters of the Kentucky River on a flooded Monterey Pike in Monterey, Ky., Sunday, April 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Abner Wagers, right, and Brayden Baker, both with the Monterey Volunteer Fire Department, walk in the rising waters of the Kentucky River near a flooded home in Monterey, Ky., Sunday, April 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

the rising waters of Cedar Creek and the Kentucky River overflow their banks, Sunday, April 6, 2025, in Monterey, Ky. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)