Angelina Jolie dared to do something almost no woman would. She changed parts of her body that are considered “feminine” for such a powerful reason that will make you think.
Angelina’s life changed when she saw the results of her genetic test. She found out she had an 87% chance of having breast cancer. Her mother’s family suffered a lot from this condition. Both her mother and grandmother died of ovarian cancer.
“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. Angelina decided not to take any risks and made a brave decision. She underwent a preventive double mastectomy.
Outside of her family, she didn’t tell anyone about her diagnosis. After 3 months of operations to rebuild her breasts, her doctors said her chances of having cancer dropped from 87% to only 5%. But peace didn’t last long. The actress presented some symptoms of ovarian cancer. So, the doctor that did her ovaries surgery was her mother’s doctor.
Her mother had said to her:” Promise me you will take Angie’s ovaries out.” Angelina was face to face with the disease that took her mother’s life, and that didn’t let 5 of her children meet their grandma. The actress didn’t let fear get to her, and she underwent surgery to get her ovaries removed. This made Angelina go into early menopause, even though she followed a hormonal treatment to try to control it. That experience helped her better understand what her mom went through.
“When I went to visit my mom in the hospital when she found out she had cancer, the first time she was gonna have her ovaries removed, she was very upset and feeling like this was their taking out her parts that were female.”
That’s why two weeks after her surgery, she wrote an article where she reveals to the world what she faced in silence. “I don’t feel any less of a woman. I feel empowered that I made a strong choice that in no way diminished my femininity.”
Her goal was to inspire women to get screened for cancer, but also to show that not all of them have enough resources to pay for such procedures. So assistance from governments and institutions is urgent. “I connected with other families, other women. And now when I meet people, we don’t talk as much about films, but we talk about their children, or women’s choices, or their wives. So it’s been a really beautiful journey.”
Angelina Jolie definitely has a superpower that deserves a standing ovation: To inspire us to be strong thanks to her honest vulnerability.
