At times, in her message, she seems to struggle to hold it together. Understandably, it has taken time for them to process.

They thought she was okay, after having her first operation in January, but then the post-operative tests confirmed the worst of news at the end of February.

Kate cancer latest: King releases statement after diagnosis

Like any patient, like any couple, it's been hard for both Kate and William to get their heads around it all. And then their biggest priority was to make sure Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis also had time to take in the fact that their mummy is now undergoing chemotherapy.

It's because of them that they have decided to tell us now. With the three children now off school for the Easter holidays they will hopefully be able to protect them from the inevitable worldwide coverage.

Doing right by her family

This, we're told, is not a knee-jerk reaction to the recent media coverage. It is Kate having the autonomy to decide what is right for her, her husband and her children.

Unsurprisingly, it also means they won't be attending the Easter Sunday service at Windsor next weekend, which many had anticipated would be the princess's first official engagement since her surgery.

You can only imagine how the Princess of Wales has felt over the past few weeks as the speculation about her health has swirled on social media.

It makes you feel quite sick that a woman diagnosed with cancer and beginning treatment, as well as wanting to put her children first, was also having to deal with the most intense global scrutiny and vicious rumours, that were frankly out of control.

Despite it all, we're told she is remaining positive. She says she is trying to focus on the things that will make her feel better. She is focused on her recovery and both she and the medical team are hoping she will make a full recovery.

Like her father-in-law, King Charles, and in a very typically royal way, she also tries to deflect the attention away from her, asking others who are also dealing with the disease not to lose faith or hope. "You are not alone," she says.

It is a heartbreaking statement, as their family, now touched by a double-cancer diagnosis, desperately plead for the time and privacy they all need to heal.