Actress and film director Angelina Jolie — whose aunt died of cancer Sunday — recently created a buzz after she underwent a preventive double mastectomy, and some Gainesville residents have reacted positively to the superstar’s decision.
In a New York Times article Jolie wrote last week, she explained that she decided to have the procedure after learning she carried a mutated gene, BRCA1, that increases the risk of developing cancer.
Lisa Brown, a genetic counselor at UF Health Cancer Center, said she applauds Jolie’s decision.
“I think it’s great that Angelina had the preventative surgery,” Brown said. “The surgery itself can reduce breast cancer risk by 90 percent, and being in the spotlight brings attention to a topic people otherwise would not have thought about.”
Branden Stanford, a 21-year-old UF food science and human nutrition junior, agreed that Jolie’s decision was positive, but he said it wasn’t heroic.
“She did what she had to do to make sure she didn’t get it,” he said. “She is up there in age, so it’s better to do it now than to get it and go through chemotherapy when you’re 60.”
Donna Palmisciano, 46-year-old architect and a contributor to the book “Just a Lump in the Road …,” which contains memoirs from young breast cancer survivors, said Jolie made the right decision by opting for preventative surgery.
“She has chosen to take control of this situation versus it taking control over her,” Palmisciano said. “I feel by having a gorgeous lady in the public eye, she is doing the right thing to come forward, educate and encourage men and women to be tested for the gene.”
