Inside King Charles's cancer recovery as he resolves to stay positive after hospital scare

King Charles is determined to get back to his normal busy schedule of royal duties after his brief hospital admission on Thursday.

Charles, who appeared in good spirits as he was pictured leaving Clarence House on Friday morning, experienced temporary side effects from his regular cancer treatment on Thursday and was kept under medical observation at the London Clinic, where he underwent prostate surgery last January.

He was then discharged to Clarence House and Palace sources insisted he was in “fine form”, joining the Queen for dinner and working on state papers in his study. Planned engagements in Birmingham on Friday were cancelled to prioritise his recovery as a precautionary measure.

The “minor bump in the road” will not get the 76-year-old monarch down, with veteran royal commentator Phil Dampier saying: “He is made of tough stuff and won’t let this get him down.”

The expert explained that his continued stoic response to his cancer diagnosis last February is undoubtedly influenced by the lessons and approaches of his parents, the late Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip.

“He’s inherited from his parents a determination and a toughness and an attitude from his father to deal with these things,” Mr Dampier said. “To get on with it and make the best of it and I’m sure that with Camilla’s support, she’s enabled him to do that.”

The King smiled and waved to well-wishers as he left his London home on Friday morning in a black audi. He was heading for his Highgrove estate in Gloucestershire to recuperate over the weekend.

His sister, Princess Anne, had been spotted leaving Clarence House just moments earlier as she popped in to see her brother following his hospitalisation.

Palace sources insist that His Majesty’s treatment continues to go in a “positive direction”, with one royal source describing his brief hospital visit as a “minimal interruption to normal service”.

Royal author Robert Hardman said “everyone is in fairly good spirits” and believes there is no cause for concern.

“I know the King is said to be particularly annoyed he has had to cancel his trip to Birmingham, but things are expected to get back to normal next week and he’s still expected to go on his state visit to Italy,” he told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.

The King and Queen are due to make a historic state visit to Italy from April 7-10, which will see Charles become the first British sovereign to address both houses of the Italian Parliament.

The overseas trip is still expected to go ahead as planned, and the postponement of their state visit to the Vatican is unrelated - and is due to Pope Francis’ ill health, not the King’s.

“The King will be determined to go to Italy - it would have to take a severe turn for the worse in his health for him not to go,” Mr Dampier said. “I’m sure that the doctors will be urging him to rest and build up reserves of energy in anticipation of the trip.”

If the trip goes ahead, it bodes well for foreign visits later in the year, with Canada believed to be firmly within the King’s sights.

Charles and other senior royals have used symbols to show support for the country after US President Donald Trump threatened annexation. Subtle shows of support have included audiences with former and current Presidents Justin Trudeau and Mark Carney, wearing red and Canadian brands, and planting a red maple tree at Buckingham Palace.

Charles has been very visible in recent months, packing in an incredible number of engagements.

Just this week, he conducted an investiture ceremony at Windsor Castle, visited a soil exhibition, and hosted a media reception at Buckingham Palace. He also performed his less-publicised state duties, which included holding audiences, reading state papers, and meeting with the Prime Minister.

Mr Hardman said his full diary has made it possible to “forget” about the King’s condition, which has seen him undergo treatment for more than a year.

He said: “You think, here's the King doing what he likes doing, which is being out and about. “This is a sort of reminder that this is a head of state who is undergoing treatment for cancer.”

The palace is keen to convey a message of reassurance, emphasising that the King is in “good form” and “doing well”.

They pointed out that the king went to hospital in a car and not an ambulance and that the Queen, who was undertaking an engagement in Wembley, north London, at the time, did not visit him.

The hospital admission was just a minor setback, with a Palace source describing it as a "most minor bump in a road that is very much heading in the right direction". They expect his diary to return to normal next week.

Mr Dampier believes his short stay in hospital “is a reminder that he must pace himself” - something his wife has been keen to stress since his diagnosis.

Last summer, the Queen said that he “won’t slow down and won’t do what he’s told”. His nephew Peter Phillips also spoke of the King’s “frustration” at having to postpone public-facing duties after his initial diagnosis and had been “pushing” for his staff to resume a normal schedule of engagements.

But the expert believes the King is slowly starting to heed her advice, and didn’t underestimate the role she has played over the past 12 months.

“She has been very supportive,” he said. “She’s been his strength and stay and I’m sure he’s been able to fight this battle because he has got her by his side.”