Angelina Jolie reveals she had double mastectomy to prevent breast cancer

The 37 year old actress and mother of six wrote an article in the New York Times today May 14th revealing she underwent a double mastectomy earlier this year after a blood test showed she was genetically susceptible to cancer. Doctors told her she had an 87% risk of getting breast cancer. Her mother, Marcheline Bertrand, died at the age of 56 after battling with cancer for almost a decade.

Mastectomy is the medical term for the surgical removal of one or both breasts, partially or completely.

Angelina Jolie said she went through a series of medical procedures from February till April 2013 to have her breasts removed and then reconstructed. And she says Brad Pitt stood by her side every step of the way.