Angelina Jolie has earned universal praise for the brave and surprising decision to have her breasts removed but her cancer-preventing medical ordeal may not be over yet.
After enduring the gruelling three-month process to undergo a double mastectomy and breast reconstruction, the actress may now also have to have her ovaries removed.
The 37-year-old actress made the decision to have the surgery after she tested positive for a “faulty” gene mutation which doctors said gave her and 87 per cent chance of developing breast cancer.
But even with her breasts removed, there is no guarantee the Oscar winner will remain cancer-free.
Jolie’s mother, actress Marcheline Bertrand who was a fierce campaigner for cancer awareness, died from ovarian cancer when she was only 56.
Doctors give Angelina a 50 per cent chance of developing ovarian cancer due to the same gene that led her to undergo double mastectomy surgery.
People magazine reports she now plans on having her ovaries removed to avoid the cancer that claimed her mother’s life.
In the New York Times article in which Jolie revealed her ordeal, she spoke of the risk of developing ovarian cancer.
“My doctors estimated that I had an 87 per cent risk of breast cancer and a 50 per cent risk of ovarian cancer, although the risk is different in the case of each woman,” she wrote.
“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 preventative 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.”
