“Life comes with many challenges. The
ones that should not scare us are the ones we can take on and take control of.”
– Angelina Jolie.
Ms. Jolie revealed today in the New
York Times that she had both breasts removed in February because she had an 87%
chance of getting cancer. In her own
words,
“My doctors estimated that I had an 87 percent risk of breast cancer and
a 50 percent risk of ovarian cancer, although the risk is different in the case
of each woman. Only a fraction of breast cancers result from an inherited gene
mutation. Those with a defect in BRCA1 have a 65 percent risk of getting it, on
average. 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. On April 27, I
finished the three months of medical procedures that the mastectomies involved.
During that time I have been able to keep this private and to carry on with my
work….I choose not to keep my story private because there are many women who do
not know that they might be living under the shadow of cancer. It is my hope
that they, too, will be able to get gene tested, and that if they have a high
risk they, too, will know that they have strong options.”
Love her, or hate her, there is no
denying this remarkable woman personifies courage. IMMENSE RESPECT!
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