UK

The King leaves hospital after three-night stay following prostate treatment

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10 months ago

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The King has left hospital after undergoing treatment for an enlarged prostate.

The monarch, 75, smiled and waved to the public as he left the private London Clinic with the Queen by his side.

Buckingham Palace said in a statement that the King has “rescheduled forthcoming public engagements to allow for a period of private recuperation”.

Image:
Pic: Reuters

He will not carry out royal engagements for up to a month as he recovers from the surgery, Sky News understands.

The palace added that the senior royal thanked all involved in his hospital visit and treatment, and was “grateful for all the kind messages he has received in recent days”.

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The King was admitted to hospital on Friday morning as Camilla accompanied him.

It is the same clinic where the Princess of Wales was recovering after undergoing abdominal surgery.

The princess left earlier on Monday to recover at home in Windsor. It is understood the King visited her ahead of his own treatment.

Image:
The King and the Princess of Wales. Pics: Reuters

Image:
Camilla visited her husband in hospital. Pic: Reuters


When the Queen left the hospital just after 3pm on Friday she told people her husband was “doing well”. She visited him again on Saturday and earlier on Monday.

The King arrived in London from Norfolk on Thursday afternoon ahead of the procedure after a couple of behind-the-scenes official duties.

He was diagnosed with the benign condition on 17 January after going for a check-up when he was experiencing symptoms.

How long will it take for the King to recover?

It’s difficult to say and depends on the individual, says Dr Amos Ogunkoya, an NHS GP working in London.

But how much time the monarch takes to recover may depend on his busy schedule.

A benign enlarged prostate is common in men over 50, according to the NHS, but a small proportion of men undergo a medical procedure to treat the condition.

“It’s rare to have surgery,” Dr Ogunkoya says, but “some people would opt for that before trying therapeutic therapies”.

Choosing whether or not to have surgery “depends on how much of a restriction the enlarged prostate is causing”.

“If it’s enlarged, it can restrict the flow. It can fill the bladder [and] you can get more water infections. It could be uncomfortable,” Dr Ogunkoya adds.

Apart from surgery, he says that some men can take medication to relax the muscles around the bladder and in the prostate gland.

Visit nhs.uk for more information.

It is understood the King shared details of his diagnosis to encourage other men who may be experiencing symptoms to get checked in line with public health advice.

NHS England said the “enlarged prostate” page on the NHS website received one visit every five seconds on the day the King’s diagnosis was announced, with further huge boosts in visits in the following days.

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King’s openness ‘a good thing’

What is an enlarged prostate?

The NHS describes a benign enlarged prostate as a condition that can affect how people urinate, and is common among men aged over 50.

“It’s not a cancer and it’s not usually a serious threat to health,” the NHS said on its website.

“Many men worry that having an enlarged prostate means they have an increased risk of developing prostate cancer. This is not the case.”

But benign prostate enlargement can sometimes lead to complications, such as a urinary tract infection, chronic urinary retention, and acute urinary retention.

The NHS also said the cause of prostate enlargement is unknown, but it is believed to be linked to hormonal changes as a man gets older.

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