Two prominent cancer survivor politicians in Northern Ireland speak out on King Charles' medical battle ahead: 'I have nothing but admiration for how he has handled this'

Stewart Dickson of the Alliance Party and Margaret Ritchie of Labour (formerly the SDLP) were diagnosed with oesophageal cancer aged 68 in 2019, and breast cancer aged 59 in 2018.

Both fought the illness successfully, and have returned to political life.

Baroness Ritchie, who led the SDLP during 2010 and 2011 and now sits in the House of Lords, said: “Obviously I wish him all my good wishes for his treatment and full recovery.

"It takes a little time, and you do have to isolate, because your immunity can be undermined.

"The treatment can be difficult – it leaves you very tired and lethargic.”

But she added: “I'm a breast cancer survivor, so I do believe there's hope.”

She also said it is important to “ensure people go down the road of screening to get a diagnosis” by going public, as the King has done, as well as finding “space and time with your family”.

Mr Dickson is an East Antrim MLA whose career dates back to the 1970s as a councillor.

His form of cancer has a five-year survival rate of only around 18% according to Cancer Research UK, and a 10-year survival rate of just 12%.

"Going public is a very difficult decision,” he said.

"Ok – I'm only in the public domain in a very minor way, and the King isn't.

"But no matter what, to talk about your personal health, particularly when you have a public spotlight on you, is incredibly difficult. It's intensely personal to speak about.

"I don't know anything about the cancer the King has, but in my case I was coming to terms with the fact I'd been diagnosed with one of the eight least survivable cancers in the world.

"I'm a survivor, and that's rare and unusual.

"Having that knowledge and not knowing what the outcome was when I spoke to journalists at the time was incredibly difficult, so I've nothing but admiration for the King and what he has said and done – not least of all when he had his prostate issue weeks ago.

"Even that was brilliant: telling people about getting checked is vitally important, and that's a wonderful lead he took.

"Undoubtedly he'll face a barrage of treatment, potentially chemotherapy, scans, and they're very tiring: I know that from first-hand experience.

"And yet he's said he's prepared to continue on, and will do his red boxes [red boxes being the bundles of state papers he is presented with regularly, to keep him up-to-speed with affairs in his Kingdom].

"It goes without saying, but has to be said: obviously I wish the King the best in whatever he's going through.”