Angelina Jolie told the world about her preventative double mastectomy to raise awareness of the breast cancer gene and the latest Cancer Council figures prove her mission has been an overwhelming success.
Cancer Council NSW has recorded a 900 per cent increase in the number of people phoning its helpline in the weeks since Jolie revealed she had surgery to remove her breasts after learning she had the defective BRCA1 gene.
“We’re calling it the Angelina effect because of the impact she is having,” the Cancer Council NSW helpline program manager Lorna O’Brien told Fairfax Media.
“Angelina coming out with this publicly has seen hundreds of helpline calls from women mentioning her name as a basis for their call. People are really wanting to live well and be healthy, and they see that she’s done it, so they realise that they can.
“It’s not about the ‘body beautiful’ mentality any more. Angelina has made it OK to take these preventative measures.”
Cancer Council Victoria has recorded an even more remarkable increase in calls to its helpline — 1033 per cent.
In response to the greatly increased demand for information about the BRCA1 gene and preventative mastectomies, the Cancer Council is hosting an hour-long free national web seminar on June 25 from 7.30pm.
To register for the free webinar, visit the Cancer Council website.
