Prince William pulls out of scheduled appearance at memorial for his godfather amid family health concerns

London — Prince William pulled out of a scheduled appearance at a Windsor Castle memorial service on Tuesday due to a personal matter, his office said. 

The Prince of Wales had been scheduled to attend a memorial for his godfather, the late King Constantine of Greece on Tuesday. Other senior members of the family still attended the event, led by Queen Camilla. William's disgraced uncle Prince Andrew was also at the memorial service. 

William's wife Kate, the Princess of Wales, continues to do well as she recovers from abdominal surgery, Kensington Palace said Tuesday.

The nature of the future queen's medical procedure has not been revealed, but the palace announced on Jan. 17 that she was having surgery and that she would likely remain in the hospital for 10 to 14 days. She returned home to continue her recovery after about a week and a half, and is expected to return to her public duties around the end of March.

King Charles III, William's father, is currently undergoing periodic treatments for an undisclosed form of cancer. It is understood that William's absence from Tuesday's event is not related to his father's illness.

In his first statement since the public announcement of his diagnosis, Charles said earlier this month that he wanted to express his "most heartfelt thanks for the many messages of support and good wishes I have received... As all those who have been affected by cancer will know, such kind thoughts are the greatest comfort and encouragement."

Charles was diagnosed with cancer while he was undergoing treatment for an enlarged prostate. Buckingham Palace said he would step back from his public duties during his treatments, but it has not said how long they will take.

Tucker Reals, Imtiaz Tyab and Cara Tabachnick contributed to this report.

In:
• British Royal Family
• Prince William Duke of Cambridge

Haley Ott

Haley Ott is cbsnews.com's foreign reporter, based in the CBS News London bureau. Haley joined the cbsnews.com team in 2018, prior to which she worked for outlets including Al Jazeera, Monocle, and Vice News.

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