'A Daughter He Never Had': King Charles and Princess Kate's Bond Grows as Both Battle Cancer

King Charles III, 75, and Kate, Princess of Wales, 42, have reportedly "gotten closer" in the wake of their equally shocking cancer diagnoses this year.

"The King has always had a close, warm, and unique relationship with the princess," a palace source recently spilled. "She has a great love and respect for him and his position. When they were in hospital together there was a lot of toddling down the corridor to spend time with her. He has been encouraging and supporting her throughout."

"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," a report published on Saturday, March 23, stated. "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 curtsy."

"It is highly unusual for just the two of them to sit down together like this," a source revealed when discussing a reported lunch meeting between the future queen and her Sovereign on Thursday, March 21. "The King had already been made aware that the woman he calls 'my beloved daughter-in-law' had cancer. They would have had lots to discuss and share because just weeks earlier the King had begun his course of treatment and dealt with announcing his diagnosis. The King left his lunch feeling very emotional."

"His Majesty is so proud of Catherine for her courage and speaking as she did. Following their time in hospital together, His Majesty has remained in the closest contact with his beloved daughter-in-law throughout the past weeks," Buckingham Palace shared in a statement on Friday, March 22. "Both Their Majesties will continue to offer their love and support to the whole family throughout this difficult time."

Another family source also revealed: "The day the family found out was the day William canceled going to the memorial of his godfather, King Constantine of Greece," they added. "They have been processing the information and Kate has already started chemotherapy."

Unlike His Majesty, who is surprising many by returning to his public work "so early," the Princess of Wales is reported to be absent from the public "until at least September."

Neither type of cancer that the King and Princess of Wales are afflicted with has been revealed to the public. It is also unknown the prognosis of the disease in each of the senior royals, and how severe the illness may be in terms of aggression or what stage the cancer is at.

Us Weekly reported on the insider revelations.