Catherine, Princess of Wales, said she was relieved to be in remission on Tuesday after visiting the London hospital where she received treatment for cancer to thank all the medics and staff there.

The future queen, whose popularity is seen as key to maintaining the royals' position in a changing Britain, revealed last March she had been diagnosed with an unspecified cancer and was undergoing chemotherapy.

While the announcement is good news for the Princess of Wales, cancer experts describe the challenges of a life shadowed by an earlier diagnosis.