Kate Middleton returning to major royal duty 1 year into cancer recovery

Ciao, Kate Middleton!

The Princess of Wales is set to make her first official overseas trip a year after entering remission from cancer.

Kensington Palace announced Middleton will head to Reggio Emilia, Italy, next week for a two-day work trip alongside the Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood.

The foundation, which the princess launched in 2021, raises awareness of how childhood experiences can impact their lives later on.

While in Italy, Middleton will meet with kids, their parents and local educators to witness what the city calls the Reggio Emilia Approach.

This approach focuses on educating children based on their unique ways of thinking and learning.

“The Princess is very much looking forward to visiting Italy next week and seeing first-hand how the Reggio Emilia approach creates environments where nature and loving human relationships come together to support children’s development,” a Kensington Palace spokesperson said in a statement.

This will be Middleton’s first international trip since 2022, when she and Prince William attended the Earthshot Prize Awards in Boston, Massachusetts.

Just two years later, in March 2024, the royal revealed she had been diagnosed with cancer and was undergoing treatment.

That September, she announced she had finished her “incredibly tough” chemotherapy treatment, and four months later, shared she was in remission.

Middleton has since made several public appearances — including the 2025 Royal Garden Party, Wimbledon and Trooping the Colour.

She also returned to her duties, including visiting the Colchester Hospital in July, where she opened up about life after treatment.

“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, really difficult,” she expressed.

“You have to find your new normal and that takes time…and it’s a roller coaster, it’s not smooth, like you expect it to be. But the reality is you go through hard times.”

William, meanwhile, reflected on his wife’s diagnosis this past October during an appearance on Eugene Levy’s “The Reluctant Traveler.”

The Prince of Wales admitted that while he never thought cancer would impact his family, when it does, it “takes you into some pretty not-great places.”

William’s dad, King Charles, was also diagnosed with cancer in February 2024 but has since “responded exceptionally well to treatment.”

William — who shares Prince George, 12, Princess Charlotte, 11, and Prince Louis, 8, with Middleton — added to Levy about his partner, “Everything is progressing in the right way.”