Norway’s crown princess placed on sick leave due to rare lung disease
The princess must take time off to manage her chronic illness
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Norway’s Crown Princess Mette-Marit’s rare lung condition has led her to take a leave of absence from her royal duties.
Palace officials have confirmed that Princess Mette-Marit will take at least a week off to manage her rare lung disease. The 51-year-old, married to Crown Prince Haakon, revealed in October 2018 that she suffers from pulmonary fibrosis, a chronic and incurable condition that leads to lung scarring and breathing difficulties.
“Due to side effects from the medication that the Crown Princess has to take for her chronic lung disease, she has been placed on sick leave, initially for one week,” the palace said in a statement on its website.
The condition has affected her royal duties in the past, leading her to either cancel or lessen her royal engagements.
“She will never be cured, but the illness is not deteriorating very rapidly, which is what the doctors are aiming for,” Haakon said in an official autobiography published last year. “She has many good days. But the uncertainty is always there. Do we have to cancel? We never know. Illness is also a part of life, as is addressing challenges together.”
The Norwegian royal family has made headlines in recent months due to controversies surrounding Princess Mette-Marit’s son, Marius Borg Høiby.
In August 2024, Høiby faced multiple allegations from ex-girlfriends accusing him of assault, compounded by his admission of being under the influence of alcohol and cocaine. Oslo police have expanded the charges against him, adding threats and theft, creating a further scandal for the royal family.
The new charges surfaced after authorities reviewed an audio recording of Høiby’s phone call to his alleged victim the day after the incident – an attack he blamed on a binge involving alcohol and cocaine.
In Paris, Prince Haakon told the Norwegian press that “it is a serious matter when the police are involved in the way they are, but at the same time it is not right for me to go into the details of the case.”
Borg Høiby has resided with Crown Princess Mette-Marit, Crown Prince Haakon, and their two children, Princess Ingrid Alexandra and Prince Sverre Magnus, continuing to maintain a close connection to the royal family. He has no royal title or official duties.
Back in 2001, Mette-Marit’s marriage to Haakon made waves as she was a single mother with a history that raised eyebrows, including a relationship with a man convicted of drug offenses. Despite the initial controversy, she has since established herself as a respected figure within Norway’s royal family.
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