When Kate Middleton celebrated her 43rd birthday on January 9, her husband Prince William wrote a tender message and shared it on the couple’s public Instagram account. According to royal expert Ingrid Seward of Majesty magazine, the display of affection was a sign that the couple has grown closer following Kate’s cancer diagnosis in early 2024.

“They are able to express themselves in a way they would never have done before,” Seward told People. “William must feel so fortunate that Kate has come through this that he wants to tell the world about that love. It shows the intimacy of them sharing that journey together.”

Last week, the princess made a public return to the Royal Marsden Hospital, the cancer center where she received some of her treatment last year. The event came in conjunction with a palace announcement that she would be joining her husband, Prince William, as a co-patron of the cancer center, which once counted Princess Diana and Queen Elizabeth among its royal supporters. It’s a sign that the princess plans to continue supporting others who have gone through the same difficult journey.

Seward, who once accompanied Diana on a visit to the hospital in the early 1990s, told People that Kate’s visit showed her connection to her late mother-in-law. “It was incredibly genuine—she really cared, and they obviously felt it too,” Seward said of Kate. “She made them feel special. It is unusual with royalty—but you certainly had that with Diana, and now we have Kate. She has really got it.”

Following the engagement, she shared that she is in remission from the unspecified form of cancer she battled over the last year. According to a “close royal insider,” who spoke to the magazine, the princess used the word to emphasize that she is moving forward.

“She has drawn a line under the last year, and she can move forward,” the source said. “The word ‘remission’ is such a positive one to use, and it just feels a veil has been lifted on their life of the last year, and that they can move forward with positivity and hope.” Despite that, Kate is still planning on a slow return to work. “For the princess, family—her husband and children—are more important than anything else.”

A source close to the royal household told the magazine that the experience has made her rethink her purpose. “It has been a tough journey—harder than we perhaps thought. She has been through a lot, and it has been a rough road,” the source said. “Serious illness like cancer does change you. She has a young family, and it makes you rethink everything—your purpose and what you want to do with your life.”