Prince William Opens Up About Talking to His Kids About Kate Middleton’s Cancer: ‘Hiding Stuff from Them Doesn’t Work’

Prince William and Kate Middleton spoke openly with Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis about her cancer diagnosis and treatment, with the royal heir saying, “Hiding stuff from them doesn’t work.”

The Prince of Wales, 43, was interviewed by Brazilian television host Luciano Huck during his trip to Brazil last week for the Earthshot Prize awards, where the conversation turned to what Huck called a “very tough” past two years, when both King Charles, 76, and Princess Kate, 43, were diagnosed with cancer.

Acknowledging that every family has its own “challenges,” Prince William said, “I think it is very individual and sort of moment-dependent as to how you deal with those problems.”

The prince said they “chose to communicate a lot more with our children.”

“Now, that has its good things and its bad things. Sometimes you feel you’re oversharing with the children you probably shouldn’t,” he continues. “But most of the time, hiding stuff from them doesn’t work.”

Prince William added that they talk about how they’re feeling and share different viewpoints so they aren’t “anxious” about unanswered questions, noting, “There’s a lot more questions when there’s no answers.”

“But it is always a balancing act — every parent knows that,” he said. “It’s, ‘How much do I say? What do I say? When do I say?’ There’s no manual for being a parent, you’ve just got to go with it – a bit of instinct.”

In March 2024, Princess Kate shared her cancer diagnosis with the world, noting that she and Prince William took time to “explain everything” to their children — Prince George, now 12, Princess Charlotte, now 10, and Prince Louis, now 7 — before publicly revealing the health news.

The Princess of Wales completed her treatment in September 2024 before announcing she was in remission early this year.

Prince William recently sat down with Eugene Levy for the Apple TV series The Reluctant Traveler, where the actor asked how the children were doing.

“Everyone has their own coping mechanisms for these sorts of things, and children are constantly learning and adapting,” William replied.

“We try to make sure we give them the security and the safety that they need,” he continued. “And we’re a very open family, so we talk about things that bother us, and things that trouble us, but you never quite know the knock-on effects that it can have. And so, it’s just important to be there for each other and to kind of reassure the children that everything is okay.”

On The Reluctant Traveler, William also gave a positive update on King Charles and Princess Kate: “Everything is progressing in the right way, which is all good news.”

Elsewhere in his conversation with Huck, Prince William made a relatable parenting confession, calling himself a “taxi driver” as he brings his children to playdates, sports games and more.

“Do you take them to school?” Huck asked.

“Oh, yeah,” William responded. “School run most days. I mean, Catherine and I share it. She probably does bulk of them.”

Prince William also echoed his previous confession that none of his children have phones before adding that, “It’s becoming a bit of a tense issue.”

The heir added that George will likely get a phone without internet access when he goes to secondary school next year.

“We communicate why we don’t think it’s right,” Prince William said. “It’s the internet access I have a problem with. I think children can access too much stuff they don’t need to see online.”

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Sharing the clip on his Instagram page, Huck wrote, “It was an honor to welcome Prince William upon his arrival in Brazil. A great conversation about family, legacy and lessons learned. Always welcome here. People in Brazil really like you,” adding a wink emoji.