After Kate Middleton and King Charles, THIS member of the Royal Family discloses cancer diagnosis

The last couple of years have been quite tough on the Royal Family.


It started from Megxit in 2020 (Prince Harry and Meghan Markle stepping down as Senior Royals of the British royal family). Then, in 2022, came the demise of Queen Elizabeth II, the longest-reigning monarch in British history.

Last year in February, King Charles III announced his cancer diagnosis, a rare move for a British monarch. The King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms was recently hospitalized. However, the monarch made a swift comeback to his royal duties reassuring his subjects about his steady progress.

In March last year, Princess Catherine, more popularly known as Kate Middleton, revealed in a video statement that she had been diagnosed with cancer after undergoing major abdominal surgery in January and is now undergoing preventative chemotherapy. She has since announced that she is in remission. The Princess of Wales has made her return to her Royal Duties now and looks well.

But the reservoir of concerning news isn’t over yet.

Another member of the Royal Family has been diagnosed with cancer and is sharing bits and pieces of her journey now.


Who is she?

Emma Manners, the Duchess of Rutland, is reflecting on her life in remission after revealing that she navigated cancer last year.

The British noblewoman, 61, shared the news about her health in an emotional first-person piece for The Telegraph on March 30. Emma received her royal title through her marriage to David, the 11th Duke of Rutland (from whom she is separated), and wrote about her health journey after she was diagnosed with breast cancer in July 2024.

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She began, "Cancer is a hideous disease and the ultimate leveler. No one is immune – not the King of England, the Princess of Wales, and certainly not me.” She went on, "Like everyone else who has ever found themselves sitting opposite a doctor being told 'you have cancer,' I felt terrified.”


The cancer diagnosis:

The Duchess of Rutland said that a mammogram detected "three shadows" in her left breast after she found a lump that she initially dismissed as "a pimple or a cyst." It was confirmed to be stage 2 breast cancer, and a treatment plan was put in place.

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While Emma was processing the shock, the Duchess said that she listened to her inner voice, which guided: "'Hang on, I’m only 60, I’ve got a bit of living left to do.' " She added, "Running Belvoir Castle with David is one of the greatest, if hugely demanding, honors of my life. I wasn’t done yet."

For the unversed, Emma’s marital home is Belvoir Castle in Leicestershire —famously used as a filming location for The Crown. She is the chief executive of the same Belvoir Castle, the family estate.


The aftermath:

The Duchess said she went into "work mode" to tackle treatment and reset her lifestyle. She refreshed her diet, began intermittent fasting, embraced nature walks, wrote in a journal, and took magnesium for sleep. The Duchess said she learnt the good news that the cancer had not spread, after she had a successful mastectomy of her left breast in September, the day after her 61st birthday.

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After learning her reconstructive surgery couldn't happen for another year, Emma joked that she reacted, "No new boobs and tummy tuck for Vi’s wedding."


The Rutlands:

Emma Watkins met her now-estranged husband, David, at a dinner party, unaware that he was the heir to a dukedom. After attending a friend's wedding in Yorkshire, she first visited the Belvoir Estate at the invitation of David, then Marquess of Granby.

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Emma married David in 1992.

The Duchess has spoken about the moment she suspected her husband was having an affair. In May 2009, she hosted a 1920s-themed party for 320 guests to celebrate the Duke’s 50th birthday. The evening included a formal dinner, a ceremonial cake-cutting, and live music. During the festivities, she asked the Duke to dance, but he declined, stating that he was "busy." Shortly afterward, she saw him laughing with another woman, an experience she later described as feeling like "a punch."

The Duchess reportedly has had five miscarriages, multiple panic attacks, and a nervous breakdown in 2017.

The Rutlands have five children: Lady Violet Diana Louise Manners, Lady Alice Louisa Lilly Manners, Lady Eliza Charlotte Manners, Charles John Montague Manners, Marquess of Granby, and Lord Hugo William James Manners.

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The couple separated in 2012, although they continue to cohabitate, each having their own living quarters at Belvoir Castle, a castle with 356 rooms.

Lady Violet Diana Louise Manners, their eldest, is engaged to marry William Garnock, the son of the 16th Earl of Lindsay.

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The Duchess reportedly has a partner, Phil Burtt, who lived in Croxton and was managing the estates before. Phil Burtt was initially hired by the Duke and the Duchess as their shoot manager, progressing to estates manager some years later.