Actress Angelina Jolie published an editorial piece in Tuesday's (May 14) edition of the New York Times. The 37-year-old mother of six opened up about her decision to have a double mastectomy after learning she had an 87 percent risk of getting cancer. In the editorial titled "My Medical Choice" Jolie explains her decision.
"My doctors estimated that I had an 87% risk of breast cancer and a 50% risk of ovarian cancer, although the risk is different in the case of each woman," Jolie writes. "Once I knew that this was my reality, I decided to be proactive and to minimize the risk as much I could. I made a decision to have a preventive double mastectomy. I started with the breasts, as my risk of breast cancer is higher than my risk of ovarian cancer, and the surgery is more complex."
Jolie says doctors discovered she carried the BRCA1 gene and after losing her mother, Mercheline Bertrand, to cancer at the age of 56 Jolie said knew needed to face this head on.
The actress began three months of secret procedures on Feb. 2. The surgery was a success and her chance of getting breast cancer has decreased less than 5 percent now.
Jolie said she wrote the letter because she wanted to encourage other women to be informed and consider their options.
"I wanted to write this to tell other women that the decision to have a mastectomy was not easy," she wrote. "But it is one I am very happy that I made."
In the letter she also stressed the importance of having a good support system and thanked Brad Pitt and her children for their loving support.
"For any woman reading this, I hope it helps you to know you have options," she said. "I want to encourage every woman, especially if you have a family history of breast or ovarian cancer, to seek out the information and medical experts who can help you through this aspect of your life, and to make your own informed choices."
