King Felipe and Queen Letizia began their workweek by making the trip to Portugal to meet with President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa and open a pancreatic cancer centre.
Their Majesties arrived in Lisbon in the morning of Monday, 28 September 2021, where they were welcomed by President Rebelo de Sousa, before having a private lunch with him. Official videos show a very warm reception on both parts, a sign of the strong diplomatic ties that unite Spain and its neighbour, as well as the excellent relationship that the King and Queen maintain with the Portuguese President personally.
Following the lunch, the trio inaugurated the new Botton-Champalimaud Pancreatic Cancer Centre, a facility that houses a day hospital, laboratories, surgery rooms and an Intensive Care Unit, all of which is equipped with the latest technology.
The new structure will integrate the pre-existing facilities that King Felipe and Queen Letizia had already visited in 2016. Since then, Queen Emerita Sofía sits on the Curators Board of the Champalinaud Foundation, which runs the entire facility.
The Botton-Champalinaud Pancreatic Cancer Centre was born from the collaboration of the Champalinaud Foundation and Spanish couple Mauricio and Charlotte Botton, who donated 50 million euros to the realisation of the structure.
The Champalinaud Foundation is considered a leader in the medical field, with its focus being on cancers, neurodegenerative and ophthalmological diseases. In Lisbon, they have a structure, the Champalinaud Centre, that specifically focuses on cancer and on the most advanced research that is developed on this rare disease.
Pancreatic cancer is rare, making up only three per cent of all cancer diagnoses, although the number has been steadily increasing over the past few years. Because of its rarity, it is often overlooked, but it is also one of the most fatal forms of cancer.
Queen Letizia is patron of the Spanish Association Against Cancer, as well as the Spanish Association for Rare Diseases.
