King Charles' VIP team on tour: bags of blood, royal doctor and health precautions
King Charles surprised royal watchers earlier this month when it was revealed he would be pausing his cancer treatment while on his upcoming tour of Australia and Samoa.
The monarch, 75, and Queen Camilla will travel overseas from 18 to 26 October, first carrying out engagements Down Under before heading to Samoa for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM).
King Charles is set to continue with his cancer treatment right up until he flies, but his doctors are happy for it to be briefly stopped while he is away on his high-profile trip, the Daily Mail reports.
Though his doctor has given the go ahead for King Charles to pause his treatment, his trip was amended to accommodate his health.
Read on for the ways King Charles will look after his health while 9,000 miles from home – and find out how the trip was changed to ensure the monarch's wellbeing.
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1. A shorter trip
While it was previously hoped that the King would visit New Zealand on this tour, his doctors advised that an extended programme should be avoided to prioritise his continued recovery, according to a Buckingham Palace spokesperson.
The palace added: "In close consultation with the Australian and New Zealand prime ministers, and with due regard for the pressures of time and logistics, it has been agreed to limit the visit to Samoa and Australia only."
2. Doctor on board
According to royal reporter Gordon Rayner, who has been on 20 royal tours, the monarch is always accompanied by a Royal Navy doctor on his travels, who will have researched the nearest hospitals in advance.
The doctor carries equipment including a mobile defibrillator and emergency medicine around in case of emergency, and is said to never be more than a few paces away from the King at any time.
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3. Royal blood
King Charles travels with his own personal packs of blood following in convoy wherever he goes.
"You've got to make sure that you're covering every eventuality and the aircraft would carry blood in case there was blood transfusion," former press secretary to the Queen Dickie Arbiter told HELLO! when quizzed on why they carried blood with them.
"There's never any guarantee you are going to get the right type of blood at your destination," he adds.
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4. Flight precautions
Unrelated to his cancer treatment, King Charles has spoken in the past about his hands becoming swollen during air travel – it was a flight to Australia in 2012 that prompted the King to call his enlarged digits 'sausage fingers'.
It's common for extremities to become swollen during air travel because sitting still causes blood to pool in certain areas due to lack of movement. To combat this and keep his fingers swell-free, the royal needs to stay hydrated during his flight, keep his hands raised above his head heart to reduce blood flow to the swollen area, and massage the affected area – something his in-flight doctor can hopefully help with.
