James Middleton Details "Unconditional" Support His Family Offered Princess Kate During Cancer Treatment

"That's the simplest way of really demonstrating love."

Kate Middleton wears a light blue dress and has long curly brown hair and looks pensive
(Image credit: Getty Images)

Kate Middleton returned to her duties as a senior member of the Royal Family in early 2025, after undergoing cancer treatment throughout 2024. Her brother, James Middleton, has opened up about his sister's diagnosis in a new interview, and revealed how the entire family supported the Princess of Wales during a difficult time.

Speaking with The London Times, James explained, "What I think is that, as a family, you learn to see and process and understand things." He continued, "For her and her family, it was a challenging time, and I know for us and our bigger family, it was a challenging time, but I think it's about communication and it's about offering support and help where you can."

The author of Meet Ella: The Dog Who Saved My Life shared the importance of helping people "on their terms," not on your own. "Being there for someone is such an important part," he explained.

Kate Middleton wearing a white tweed blazer dress talking to Prince William at a VE Day anniversary concert

Prince William and Kate Middleton at a VE Day anniversary concert in 2025.

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Describing the support for his sister as "unconditional," James noted, "I'm not doing it for something in return. I'm doing it because I love you." He continued, "And that's the simplest way of really demonstrating love. You can do it in all these various fancy ways, but actually, you know, it is just generally being there."

James and Pippa Middleton with Alizee Thevenet walking in front of a lit Christmas tree in December 2024

James Middleton, wife Alizee Thevenet, and sister Pippa Middleton in December 2024.

(Image credit: Getty Images)

In Sept. 2024, James gave a brief update on his sister Kate's health during an appearance on the TODAY show. "She's doing okay," he explained. "It's not for me to share on her behalf, you know, how everything's going. But she's getting all the right support and focus that she needs."

The author has also spoken about how proud he is of Kate and the public role she's taken on as a member of the Royal Family. "Catherine is very much on a public stage and I'm in awe of a lot of the things she does," James told Us Weekly in Oct. 2024. "I think the thing I'm most proud of is that she's still the same person that I grew up with."

Amy Mackelden
Weekend Editor

Amy Mackelden is the weekend editor at Marie Claire, where she covers celebrity and royal family news. She was the weekend editor at Harper’s BAZAAR for three years, where she covered breaking celebrity and entertainment news, royal stories, fashion, beauty, and politics. Prior to that, she spent a year as the joint weekend editor for Marie Claire, ELLE, and Harper's BAZAAR, and two years as an entertainment writer at Bustle. Her additional bylines include Cosmopolitan, People, The Independent, HelloGiggles, Biography, Shondaland, Best Products, New Statesman, Heat, and The Guardian. Her work has been syndicated by publications including Town & Country, Good Housekeeping, Esquire, Delish, Oprah Daily, Country Living, and Women's Health. Her celebrity interviews include Jennifer Aniston, Jessica Chastain, the cast of Selling Sunset, Emma Thompson, Jessica Alba, and Penn Badgley. In 2015, she delivered an academic paper at Kimposium, the world's first Kardashian conference.