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"In a candid op-ed titled, &amp;quot;My Medical Choice,&amp;quot; published in the New York Times today, megastar Angelina Jolie revealed she had undergone a preventative double mastectomy after her doctors told her she had an 87% chance of contracting breast cancer, as well as a 50% chance of ovarian cancer. The actress&amp;#039;s mother, Marcheline Bertrand, battled ovarian cancer for nearly eight years before succumbing to the illness in 2007. Through rigorous testing, Jolie learned she carries a mutated strain of the BRCA1 gene, which significantly increases women&amp;#039;s risk for breast cancer. Jolie explained in the article how she came to the decision to undergo surgery, and how her fianc\u00E9, Brad Pitt, and children supported her through the difficult process. She also debunked some of the myths that surround mastectomies and bravely detailed each step of her harrowing medical journey, which began on February 2 and ended April 27. Despite a three-month recovery, Jolie expressed gratitude in the article saying, &amp;quot;I wanted to write this to tell other women that the decision to have a mastectomy was not easy. But it is one I am very happy that I made&amp;quot; and &amp;quot;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.&amp;quot; Jolie, whose chance of developing breast cancer has now dropped to less than 5%, continues to garner praise and well wishes, including from fellow celebrities. Actress Marlee Matlin called her &amp;quot;brave, honest and strong.&amp;quot; Kristen Bell dubbed Jolie&amp;#039;s article as &amp;quot;admirable.&amp;quot;  Would you follow Jolie&amp;#039;s path if you learned you had an elevated risk for cancer? Comment below. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.womansday.com/life/entertainment/news/a47881/angelina-jolie-surgery/>