Angelina Jolie had her breasts enlarged for her role as Lara Croft in Tomb Raider but the actress had them removed for her role as a mother.
Jolie reveals in a New York Times op-ed that she had a preventive double mastectomy after learning that she carries the “faulty” BRCA1 gene, which increases the risk of breast cancer. She recalls telling her children how “mommy’s mommy” died of cancer but assuring them that they needn’t worry about her. Now they don’t have to.
“My chances of developing breast cancer have dropped from 87 percent to under 5 percent,” Jolie explains. “I can tell my children that they don’t need to fear they will lose me to breast cancer.”
She notes that there have been many advances in reconstruction over the years. The surgery has left only small scars, which is reassuring to her children.
“On a personal note, I do not feel any less of a woman,” she adds. “I feel empowered that I made a strong choice that in no way diminishes my femininity.”
