Royal Watch News

Duchess Catherine makes terminally ill boy smile

Sep 14, 2012, 12:01 GMT

Duchess Catherine

Britain's Duchess Catherine made a terminally ill boy feel like his leukaemia had 'gone' yesterday (13.09.12).

The brunette royal put a smile back on the face of Zakwan - who turned 15 two days ago but has as little as two days to live - when she met him at Hospis Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur, where she is on tour with Prince William as part of Queen Elizabeth's Diamond Jubilee celebrations.

Zakwan managed to summon up enough strength to speak to Catherine for 15 minutes after he had postponed a badly-needed blood transfusion for 24 hours to ensure he wouldn't miss her visit.

She put a hand on his cheek and said: 'You must be very, very brave. Are you in pain? You're a brave boy.'

Following Zakwan's conversation with the duchess, the youngster's mum Norizan Sulong said his face lit up with joy when he saw the 30-year-old duchess, but he usually spends his days sleeping and crying in pain.

As she struggled to hold back the tears, Norizan explained: 'It was as if the leukaemia had gone!'

Catherine also signed Zakwan's 15th birthday card, writing: 'Happy Birthday Zakwan -- Catherine', and the pair exchanged compliments as she told him he was 'very handsome' and he said the she was 'very pretty'.

William and Catherine attended a business lunch in the Malaysian capital earlier today (14.09.12) as they continued their nine-day Asia Pacific tour - which will see them visit the Solomon Islands on the weekend and later Tuvalu - but the prince admitted he is not a fan of the country's durian fruit.

The second in line to the throne tasted the foodstuff, which is known for its potent scent and is often referred to as the 'king of fruits', at the Malaysian Prime Minster's house yesterday (13.09.12).

Addressing some 1,000 businessmen and women at the lunch organised by the British Malaysian Chamber of Commerce, he said: 'Before I start, I'd just like to say how delicious lunch was but I was delighted to see that durian wasn't on the menu.

'Having tasted it yesterday, I feared for the safety of the people I met thereafter.'