Kate wears toy tiara for girl’s tea party during visit to cancer hospital

The Duchess of Cambridge wore a different kind of tiara during a visit to a cancer hospital on the Pakistan royal tour – a plastic one.

Kate and the duke visited the cancer facility in Lahore on Thursday afternoon, where they played with young patients receiving treatment.

Dr Aasim Yusuf, from the Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Centre, welcomed the couple, having previously hosted William’s mother, Diana, Princess of Wales.

Kate and seven-year-old Wafia Rehmani, who has a kidney tumour, wore matching toy tiaras during a toy tea party at the hospital.

Wafia, who comes from over the border in Afghanistan, said she wants to be a doctor and showed the duke and duchess her toy medical set.

She is in her second round of chemotherapy after the illness reappeared – doctors said they are optimistic about her recovery.

William also played with a young patient while at the hospital, engaging in a game of hook fishing.

Imran Khan, now prime minister, founded the charity hospital after his mother, Shaukat Khanum, died from cancer in 1985.

He encouraged his friends to help with the fundraising and Diana made two private visits to the hospital – in 1996 and 1997 – to help.

Dr Yusuf said showing William around made him feel “a lot older”.

“It’s a great honour and a privilege for us to be welcoming Prince William and the Duchess of Cambridge today,” he said.

“It’s a special honour that they have chosen to come and see our hospital again.”

On the visit from Diana, Dr Yusuf said staff were “struck” by how friendly she was and able to put them at ease.

“We were all very nervous about what we should say and what she would ask and how we should address her,” he said.

“The minute she came into the room, she lit up the room obviously and also she was just so friendly and down to earth.

“You could tell that she was genuinely interested in the people she was meeting.”