LONDON: Hollywood star Angelina Jolie has had a double mastectomy to reduce her chances of getting breast cancer and says she hopes her story will inspire other women fighting the life-threatening disease.
Jolie wrote in the New York Times on Tuesday the operation had made it easier for her to reassure her six children that she will not die young from cancer, like her own mother did at 56.
“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,” wrote Jolie, 37.
“I have always told them not to worry, but the truth is I carry a ‘faulty’ gene.”
The Oscar-winning actress said her doctors had estimated she had an 87 percent risk of breast cancer and 50 percent risk of ovarian cancer.
“Once I knew this was my reality, I decided to be proactive and to minimize the risk as much as I could. I made a decision to have a preventive double mastectomy,” she said.
Partner and fellow Hollywood star Brad Pitt was by Jolie’s side through three months of treatment that ended late in April, she said. The two got engaged last year.
Jolie said that even though she had kept silent about her treatment while it was going on, she hoped her story would now help other women.
“I choose not to keep my story private because there are many women who do not know that they might be living under the shadow of cancer. It is my hope that they, too, will be able to get gene tested.”
Breast cancer alone kills about 458,000 people each year, according to the World Health Organization. It is estimated that one in 300 to one in 500 women carry a BRCA 1 or BRCA 2 gene mutation, as Jolie does.
OPENNESS PRAISED
CNN anchor Zoraida Sambolin announced on Tuesday that she had breast cancer and was also getting a double mastectomy.
Sambolin, who anchors CNN’s “Early Start” morning show, discussed her condition on the show while talking about Jolie’s procedure.
“I struggled for weeks trying to figure out how tell you that I had been diagnosed with breast cancer and was leaving to have surgery,” Sambolin, 47, said on Facebook. “Then ... Angelina Jolie shares her story of a double mastectomy and gives me strength and an opening.”
Jolie’s decision was also welcomed by breast cancer patients and charities.
Richard Francis, head of research at the Breakthrough Breast Cancer charity in Britain, said it demonstrated the importance of educating women with the gene fault.
“For women like Angelina it’s important that they are made fully aware of all the options that are available, including risk-reducing surgery and extra breast screening,” Francis told Reuters.
Baroness Delyth Morgan, Breast Cancer Campaign's chief executive, said Jolie’s openness in talking about her experience and her decision to have surgery would raise awareness of the disease and its risk.
Jolie won a 1999 best supporting actress Oscar for “Girl, Interrupted.”
She lends her star power to a range of humanitarian campaigns, including serving more than 10 years as a goodwill ambassador for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees.
In April, she urged governments to step up efforts to bring wartime sex offenders to justice.
Angelina Jolie has double mastectomy to elude breast cancer
Angelina Jolie has double mastectomy to elude breast cancer
Where We Are Going Today: Makbous Express in Riyadh
- Each option complements the dish in its own way, though the mandi rice seems best suited to absorb the savory depth of the sauce
Sometimes comfort arrives in a takeout box. Makbous Express in Riyadh brings the warmth of home-style cooking to your doorstep, offering familiar Gulf flavors designed for casual indulgence rather than fine dining.
Even without the dine-in experience, the food travels well, retaining much of its authentic charm. The tabolah stands out immediately. A bright mix of parsley, bulgur, tomato, and onion, it tastes crisp and refreshing, cutting through richer dishes with balance and simplicity. It is a welcome palate-cleanser.
The Makbous meat, the restaurant’s bestseller, shows why it carries that title. Tender meat cooked in aromatic saffron sauce arrives perfectly seasoned, with your choice of biryani, mandi, or plain rice.
Each option complements the dish in its own way, though the mandi rice seems best suited to absorb the savory depth of the sauce. This plate captures the essence of Kuwaiti soul food: generous, fragrant, and deeply satisfying.
Less exciting was the shrimp pasta, tossed in Makbous hot sauce. The shrimp were well-cooked, but the overall dish felt predictable, with the sauce adding heat but not much complexity.
The jareesh, made from crushed wheat groats simmered in chicken stock and cumin, then topped with butter or wild ghee, is pure comfort food. Warm, wholesome, and nostalgic, it delivers understated satisfaction rather than surprise. It’s the kind of dish that feels like home cooking done right.
The potato stew was runny for my taste and lacked the richness needed to tie its flavors together. A thicker texture or deeper spice could have made it more enjoyable, especially if it had more body.
Despite a few uneven dishes, Makbous Express succeeds in delivering the homely warmth of Kuwaiti cuisine, one that speaks of tradition, spice, and generosity. It may not dazzle at every turn, but for days when you crave hearty, unpretentious comfort food, this express route hits close to home.
