Kate Middleton to miss Trooping the Colour rehearsal

Kate Middleton will miss the dress rehearsal for the king’s annual birthday parade next month amid her ongoing cancer treatment.

The Princess of Wales would normally be a major part of Trooping the Colour, the yearly military exhibition marking the sovereign’s official birthday.

Her presence at the official ceremony on June 15 remains up in the air, but she will not be present at the June 8 rehearsal, Buckingham Palace told the BBC on Thursday.

Kate, 42, has not made official public appearances since undergoing abdominal surgery in January. On March 22, after weeks of speculation and rumors, she announced she’d been diagnosed with cancer and would be undergoing chemotherapy.

Last week, Kensington Palace told the BBC, “The princess is not expected to return to work until it’s cleared by her medical team.”

In the meantime, there have been reports Kate was out and about with her family and running errands by herself, but those reports have not been confirmed. Additionally, no confirmed new photographs of the princess have been published.

While Kate’s status for the official Trooping the Colour remains unknown, Buckingham Palace also confirmed Thursday that King Charles III will be in attendance despite his own ongoing cancer battle, according to the BBC. Last year, the king rode on horseback for the parade, but this year he will watch from a carriage alongside Queen Camilla.

Trooping the Colour is one of the most significant annual events on the British royal calendar. The ceremony has marked the sovereign’s official birthday since 1748 and existed in its current form since 1889.

The June 8 dress rehearsal is known as the Colonel’s Review. Lt. Gen. James Bucknall, a former British Army officer, will take Kate’s place at the rehearsal.