King Charles is 'doing well' after undergoing hospital treatment for enlarged prostate
King Charles has recovered "well" after planned surgery on his enlarged prostate and is expected to stay in hospital for the rest of the weekend, ITV News Health Reporter Katie Fenton reports
The King is recovering in hospital and "doing well" after he underwent planned treatment for an enlarged prostate on Friday, sources have said.
King Charles had cancelled a number of engagements ahead of the corrective procedure at The London Clinic, where he is expected to stay at least until the end of the weekend.
He was seen earlier on Friday entering the central London hospital - the same facility where the Princess of Wales is recovering from abdominal surgery, with the Queen at his side.
It is understood he visited Kate before his treatment. The Queen left the London Clinic after visiting the King on Friday evening, and returned there on Saturday morning, leaving later in the afternoon.
Buckingham Palace confirmed the union flag above monarchy HQ had been replaced with a Royal Standard, signaling the King was in residence.
In a statement the Palace said: "The King was this morning admitted to a London hospital for scheduled treatment.
"His Majesty would like to thank all those who have sent their good wishes over the past week and is delighted to learn that his diagnosis is having a positive impact on public health awareness."
Charles was diagnosed with the benign condition on January 17 while staying at Birkhall in Scotland, after going for a check-up because he was experiencing symptoms.
He is understood to have wanted to share the news to encourage other men to get themselves checked.
Following the King's announcement last week, visits to the NHS website’s prostate enlargement page were up by more than 1,000%.
The health service's website page on the illness received more than 11 times as many visits when the royal news was revealed, compared to the previous day.
Declan Cahill, a consultant urological surgeon, told ITV News the King had been "very selfless" in making his diagnosis public.
'Because this issue has been raised, some men will go to the doctor just in case for a check-up and they'll be found to have prostate cancer and they'll be cured,' Declan Cahill told ITV News
He said: "To share it will increase awareness and a lot of men are going to get a benefit from this."
The King, who only acceded to the throne 16 months ago, was urged to rest by his doctors ahead of the corrective procedure.
The Queen had previously said her husband is "fine" and looking forward to getting back to work.
News of his diagnosis came on the same day that Kensington Palace announced the Princess of Wales was in hospital after undergoing major abdominal surgery.
Kate, 42, remains in The London Clinic and is not expected to carry out official engagements until after Easter, with the Prince of Wales clearing his diary of official duties for the time being.
On a visit to Aberdeen Art Gallery last week, the Queen told Aberdeen's Lord Provost that the King was doing well and looking forward to getting back to work
One in every three men over the age of 50 will have symptoms of an enlarged prostate, which include needing to visit the toilet more frequently, with more urgency, and difficulty emptying the bladder.
An enlarged prostate, known as benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), does not usually pose a serious threat to health, and it is not cancer.
But patients may need to have several tests for the condition to rule out the possibility they have another illness with similar symptoms, such as prostate cancer.
Surgery is usually only recommended for moderate to severe symptoms that have not responded to medicine, the NHS website says.
Treatment can include a number of procedures, including removing part of the prostate gland with a laser, water ablation using the pressure of the water to destroy prostate tissue, or urethral lift implants, which hold the enlarged prostate away from the urethra so it is not blocked.
Other options include a prostate artery embolisation, during which tiny plastic particles are injected into blood vessels to shrink the prostate gland by reducing its blood supply.
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 days that followed.
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