Norway's crown princess undergoes successful lung transplant, palace says

Norway's Crown Princess Mette-Marit has undergone a successful lung transplant in Oslo, the country's royal household has said.

Mette-Marit, 52, was diagnosed with a form of pulmonary fibrosis in 2018. In recent months, her condition had worsened.

"We are delighted that everything has progressed well so far," Are Holm, lung specialist at the hospital, said in the palace statement.

He added that Mette-Marit would remain in hospital for "several weeks to come" under observation, which he said is standard practice for all recent transplant recipients.

Prince Haakon will adjust his official schedule to support her, the palace said.

The transplant comes two days after Mette-Marit's son Marius Borg Høiby was sentenced to four years in prison after being convicted of two counts of rape . Although he pleaded guilty to some lesser offences, he denied the most serious charges against him and his lawyers said he would appeal the sentence.

Høiby, 29, was four when his mother married Crown Prince Haakon and is not himself a royal figure. Ahead of the verdict on Monday, his legal team repeatedly and unsuccessfully sought his release from prison so he could spend time with his mother because of her declining health.

The transplant "is very happy news for the Norwegian royal family and the Kingdom of Norway," said historian and royal commentator Ole-Jørgen Schulsrud-Hansen.