Princess Kate visits Italy on first overseas trip after cancer treatment

Catherine, Princess of Wales, arrived Wednesday in Italy for her first foreign trip since she underwent cancer treatment. Arriving to greet eager crowds in the city of Reggio Emilia, Princess Kate, as she's widely known, stepped back onto the world stage for the first time in years. Catherine shocked the world when she announced her cancer diagnosis in March 2024, and she later said she had undergone six months of chemotherapy treatment. Since then, Kate, as she's widely known, has been making a slow and carefully managed return to public life , sharing parts of her journey through select public appearances. Catherine, Princess of Wales speaks with children during the first day of her visit to Reggio Emilia, Italy, May 13, 2026. Robino Salvatore/GC Images/Getty But for her return to foreign travel, the princess chose northern Italy for a two-day visit focused on a cause close to her heart — early childhood development. The timing was notable. Back in London, father-in-law King Charles III, who is also undergoing cancer treatment, was carrying out one of the monarchy's grandest ceremonial duties on Wednesday, delivering a landmark speech for the formal opening of a new session of the British Parliament. Catherine, whose husband Prince William will one day be king, described the two-day visit to Reggio Emilia as a "special trip" in an Instagram post. …