Queen Elizabeth II spent her final years secretly suffering through painful cancer, according to a new biography of the late British monarch.
The Queen, who died in September after more than 70 years on the throne, worked through the agony of bone marrow cancer — the most common symptom of which is bone pain, according to “Elizabeth: An Intimate Portrait,” an upcoming biography written by author and broadcaster Gyles Brandreth.
In the months leading up to her death at the age of 96, there was widespread speculation that the Queen was dealing with an illness. Her death certificate officially listed her cause of death as “old age.”
“I had heard that the Queen had a form of myeloma — bone marrow cancer — which would explain her tiredness and weight loss and those ‘mobility issues’ we were often told about during the last year or so of her life,” Brandreth wrote in the book, which is being serialized by The Daily Mail.
“The most common symptom of myeloma is bone pain, especially in the pelvis and lower back, and multiple myeloma is a disease that often affects the elderly,” the former MP wrote.
“Currently, there is no known cure, but treatment — including medicines to help regulate the immune system and drugs that help prevent the weakening of the bones — can reduce the severity of its symptoms and extend the patient’s survival by months or two to three years.”
The royal biography highlights the Queen’s stoicism following the death of her husband of 73 years, Prince Philip, who died in April 2021.
She reportedly told a lady-in-waiting that keeping busy with her royal duties helped her cope with the loss, refusing to give in to grief.
“My husband would certainly not have approved,” the Queen said. She watched the BBC police drama “Line of Duty” to keep her spirits up, the book said.
By autumn of last year, however, she was urged by her doctors to take it easy due to fatigue.
“I’ve got to be sensible,” she acknowledged of her declining health.
The book also claims that the Queen took no time in deciding to strip Prince Andrew of his royal duties following his bombshell interview with the BBC about his relationship with convicted sexual predator Jeffrey Epstein in 2019.
“The Queen took a firm grip of things. To use the military jargon, there were only a few days between flash and bang. Action was called for it and she took it,” a senior courtier reveals in the book.
But she did allow herself to be photographed riding with her “favorite son” the day after he was relieved on his duties and supported having him beside her at Philip’s memorial service.
She apparently listened in earnest as the Duke of York attempted to explain his connection to Epstein, only replying with a single word: “Intriguing.”