The scandal erupted earlier this month after Kensington Palace released a photo from the UK’s Mother’s Day celebrations on March 10, showing the Princess of Wales posing with her three children. News organizations later pulled the photo after royal watchers noted it appeared to be manipulated, a move that sparked new conspiracy theories about Kate’s health.
Buckingham Palace later released a statement from the 42-year-old royal, appearing to indicate she took responsibility for the photos that sparked the scandal. In a statement, she apologized for “any confusion” the photo caused and admitted she “occasionally attempts to edit.”
Now that the princess has revealed her cancer diagnosis, many are dismayed at how devastated she has been over previous editing scandals.
“Why would Kensington Palace release this altered photo and throw Kate Middleton under the bus when they probably knew she had cancer all along???” one wonders about X.
Another X user said palace staff could take responsibility for editing the photos rather than “throwing the palace’s cancer patients under the bus.”
“Wait, Kensington Palace threw a woman with cancer under the bus for that photo???” they’d asked. “Is it true that staff can’t handle this kind of pressure?”
“Kate Middleton just revealed that she has cancer and is undergoing chemotherapy, which makes it even more bizarre that the royal family blames her for the photo editing,” another X user agreed. “Hopefully she gets better and hopefully their PR learns from this.”
“#KateGate” scandal aside, well-wishes have begun pouring in for the princess since she revealed her cancer diagnosis. Kate said she has begun chemotherapy and seems hopeful that directly addressing her diagnosis will provide the public with answers and allow her family to focus on her recovery.
“We hope you can understand that as a family we need some time, space and privacy right now while I complete my treatment,” she said.