OP-ed by Angelina Jolie: My Medical Choice

[Tx4obama]

My Medical Choice

MY MOTHER fought cancer for almost a decade and died at 56. She held out long enough to meet the first of her grandchildren and to hold them in her arms. But my other children will never have the chance to know her and experience how loving and gracious she was.

We often speak of “Mommy’s mommy,” and I find myself trying to explain the illness that took her away from us. They have asked if the same could happen to me. I have always told them not to worry, but the truth is I carry a “faulty” gene, BRCA1, which sharply increases my risk of developing breast cancer and ovarian cancer.

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.

-snip-

Full article here: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/14/opinion/my-medical-choice.html?_r=1&

Related post here: http://www.mediaite.com/online/angelina-jolie-announces-she-has-undergone-preventive-double-mastectomy/

[silverweb]

1. A strong and beautiful woman.

[font color="navy" face="Verdana"]On many levels.

[DesertFlower]

3. i agree. nt

[usGovOwesUs3Trillion]

6. agreed, and a wonderful Mother, too.

Thank you for sharing your story, Angelina :bear-hug:

[Roselma]

2. Good mom.

Good article.

[appacom]

4. I so admire her, and have for a very long time.

She epitomizes the term "change agent."

[RainDog]

5. hopefully her choice will help other women facing the same issue

I wish all had access to the same level of medical care.