KEY POINTS:
LONDON - Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, is to have a hysterectomy operation, the royal family said today.
A spokeswoman for Prince Charles's Clarence House office said the former Camilla Parker Bowles will have the operation early next month after accompanying her husband on a visit to the Middle East.
The spokeswoman declined to say why the procedure, which involves removal of the womb, was being performed, but described it as a "routine scheduled operation" performed on one British woman in five above the age of 55.
Camilla turns 60 this year.
"It's a routine scheduled operation but we wouldn't disclose any further details of a private medical condition," the spokeswoman said.
"It's something that's being done on advice of her doctor, but is something that's very common for women of that age."
- REUTERS