How Princess Kate's royal role could change following recent 'wake up call'

Following her shock cancer diagnosis last year, the Princess of Wales took a step back from royal duties to focus on her recovery and spent the summer with her family in Windsor, away from the public eye. In September, she confirmed that she had completed her chemotherapy treatment and slowly returned to work, which included hosting her annual carol concert at Westminster Abbey and joining the royals at their traditional Christmas morning church service in Sandringham.

However, her husband, Prince William, has emphasised that Kate still has a 'long way to go' with her recovery, and during a recent public engagement at the London Royal Marsden Hospital, Kate opened up about her experience of cancer treatment for the first time, admitting that 'it's hard to get back to normal'.

Now, royal correspondent Katie Nicholl has claimed that the Princess is returning to her royal role 'on her terms', and consequently it could mean that Kate adjusts her historically hectic work schedule. She told The Sun's Royal Exclusive show: "She did a lot of running up and down the country, juggling that with the three children doing the overseas tours. People would be quite surprised to learn just how hands on William and Catherine are as parents. And I think this is just, well, it's a wake up call, isn't it? This is a real reality check for her."

During Kate's solo trip to the hospital to talk to patients and staff, she explained that despite completing her treatment she still sees the difficulties of the road ahead. She said: "You think the treatment has finished and you can crack on and get back to normal, but that's still a real challenge. The words totally disappear. And understanding that as a patient, yes there are side effects around treatment but actually there are more long term side effects."