King Charles treats Princess Kate like the "daughter he’s never had" amid their cancer battles, a royal insider claimed.
The Princess of Wales's bond with her father-in-law has grown stronger during their recent health scares.
On Friday, Kate, 42, revealed via video she had been diagnosed with cancer and was undergoing preventative chemotherapy.
This came after weeks of speculation and conspiracy theories regarding Kate's whereabouts online.
King Charles treats Kate like a daughter, sources claim
Getty
In February, Buckingham Palace announced that the monarch, 75, had been diagnosed with a form of cancer.
The cancer was found during an operation to treat an enlarged prostate.
According to those familiar with their relationship, the King has always had a “soft spot” for the Princess of Wales.
One insider told The Telegraph: “It’s a different relationship to the one he has with his son because he’s not just pa-in-law, he is also the King.
King Charles and Princess Kate have both stepped back from royal duties due to their health concernsGetty“She does often turn to him for guidance on royal matters, but not family matters – she has William for that and her own parents Michael and Carole, to whom she is extremely close.
“He’s not a father figure as such – she’s got her own dad to whom she’s absolutely devoted – but you could say the King treats her like the daughter he never had.
“You see it in the pictures of them together. That relationship is best summed up in those fascinating moments when she greets him first with a kiss and then with a curtsey.”
King Charles and Princess Kate were both hospitalised at The London Clinic around the same time.
Kate reportedly wanted to know how King Charles was copingPALATEST ROYAL NEWS
Kate and King Charles are reportedly very closePAThe source added: “There were other visits when they were both in there together and they have been in contact ever since.
"They can both empathise with what the other is going through, which does help at a difficult time like this.
"What we’ve seen in recent weeks is that because they are both going through the same health experience it’s cemented that bond.”
One of the reasons Kate agreed to record the video message is because she felt “encouraged by how warmly the King’s public statement on his health was received, and the positive impact it has had on others going through the same thing”, sources have claimed.