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Angelina Jolie Calls Mastectomy Scars ‘A Choice,’ Renews Push for Wider BRCA Testing

In a France Inter interview, she frames her 2013 preventive surgeries as a parenting decision, urging broader access to genetic screening for those at risk.

Overview

  • Jolie said she loves her scars because they reflect a deliberate step to stay with her children as long as possible, adding she feels grateful she had that option.
  • She tested positive for a BRCA1 mutation and had a preventive double mastectomy in 2013, later writing that her estimated breast cancer risk fell from about 87% to under 5%.
  • In 2015 she also removed her ovaries and fallopian tubes as a preventive measure, citing the family cancer history that includes her mother’s death at 56.
  • Her December 2025 TIME France cover publicly revealed her mastectomy scars for the first time, part of her effort to destigmatize post‑surgical bodies and highlight breast health.
  • While promoting the film Couture, in which she plays a character diagnosed with breast cancer, she reiterates calls for affordable BRCA testing for women with clear risk factors or strong family histories, with a French theatrical release scheduled for February 18.