A royal aide said the visit is "an important step in the princess’s recovery journey"
Credit: Marco BERTORELLO / POOL / AFP via Getty; Matt Porteous
NEED TO KNOW
- Kate Middleton wore a blazer connected to her cancer journey during her final day in Italy
- The two-day stay was the Princess of Wales’ first overseas work trip since she announced her cancer diagnosis in March 2024
- The visit marked a milestone in her recovery and focused on expanding her early childhood work internationally
Kate Middleton wore something symbolic for the last day of her trip to Italy.
On May 14, the Princess of Wales, 44, wore her beige Blazé Milano pinstriped blazer for her last round of outings in Reggio Emilia, layering it over a cream sweater and skirt with cap toe slingbacks.
The blazer by the Italian label served as a flag dressing nod to the country she was visiting, but it had an even deeper meaning connected to her cancer journey.
Princess Kate wore the jacket in a photo released with the first update about her cancer treatment in June 2024 after she announced her diagnosis that March.
Credit: Stuart C. Wilson/Getty
Nearly two years ago, the Princess of Wales wore the beige blazer in a portrait taken by Matt Porteous beneath a tree in Windsor, where she lives with Prince William and their children, Prince George, 12, Princess Charlotte, 11, and Prince Louis, 8.
The pensive portrait marked the first image of Kate since she announced her cancer diagnosis in a video message that March, and she said in a letter shared along with the June shot that she was making "good progress" but was not "out of the woods yet."
In September 2024, Princess Kate shared that she had completed chemotherapy treatment that September, and in January 2025, she announced with "relief" that she was in remission.
The Princess of Wales' visit to Italy was a milestone as her first overseas work trip since she announced her cancer diagnosis, and she brought things full circle by wearing the Blazé Milano blazer abroad, as aides described her solo visit to Italy as an "important step" in her cancer recovery journey.
"[This visit] is an important step in the princess’s recovery journey. She takes great joy from this work,” an aide said in advance. "I think it is only right that her first international trip since her illness is one that is focused on an issue that is committed to championing for decades to come and is a real issue that she wants to shine a spotlight on."
The Princess of Wales' Reggio Emilia trip is a "really significant moment for her" as she takes her early childhood work "up a gear," aides explained. Princess Kate visited the city from May 13 to 14 on a fact-finding mission to further her work in the early childhood sector as her Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood expands internationally.
Credit: Jordan Pettitt – Pool/Getty
Can't get enough of PEOPLE's Royals coverage? Sign up for our free Royals newsletter to get the latest updates on Kate Middleton, Meghan Markle and more!
Kate was welcomed by thousands in Reggio Emilia's city square, toured the Loris Malaguzzi International Centre to see the Reggio Emilia philosophy's hub for herself and visited two preschools, among other engagements, during her two-day stay.
The Princess of Wales previously wore the same pinstripe blazer for a meaningful visit to Colchester Hospital's Wellbeing Garden in July 2025, where she spoke with candor about the "really, really difficult" phase after cancer treatment and the emotional "roller coaster" that comes with it.
Read the full article here