I lost my grandmother and my mother to breast can-
cer. I remember once holding my mother’s hand, as she was receiv-
ing chemotherapy, when she started to turn purple and I had to race
to get the nurse. Now there are new ways to identify which chemo-
therapy medication is best for each patient, resulting in fewer of
the horrible side effects. Fewer. It’s often still so hard on the body.
My mother fought cancer for nearly a decade. As I stood in the
hallway of the hospital waiting for my mother’s body to be collected
and taken to be cremated, her doctor told me she had promised my
mother that she would make sure I was informed about my medi-
cal options. Years later, I was able to have a genetic test that re-
vealed I carried a gene, the so-called BRCA1, that predisposes me
to cancer. The test came too late for the other women in my family.
Women typically have a 13% risk of developing breast can-
cer over their lifetime. I had an estimated 87% risk of develop-
ing the disease and a 50% risk of ovarian cancer. Because of my
high risk, experts recommended preventive surgeries. I had a
double mastectomy and later removed my ovaries and fallopian
tubes, significantly reducing, although not removing altogether,
my risk of developing cancer.
In the years since my surgeries, there has been further prog-
ress. Technology and science are converging in ways that will
bring discoveries to clinics —and into
our homes—at the most rapid pace in
human history. Genetic testing has
become more accessible and less ex-
pensive, although still not for every-
one. Immunotherapy advances mean
there are now targeted treatments like
checkpoint inhibitors, which help
block the “cloak of invisibility” that
cancer cells put up to avoid immune
attack. PARP inhibitors, when used
in combination with immunotherapy,
can improve the chances of survival for breast
and ovarian cancer patients. In a recent visit
to the Institut Curie, France’s leading cancer
hospital and research center, I met some of the
doctors and scientists who are working to de-
velop new treatments that will mean more peo-
ple survive cancer in the future and are able to
live better lives during their illness.
An artist friend of mine recently survived
breast cancer. She had no family history of the
disease but developed it in her 30s. She edu-
cated herself on all the latest advancements and
procedures. She made the choice of a mastec-
tomy, removing the breast and nipple. She froze
her eggs before she had to go through chemo
and then went to reconstruction. She docu-
mented her treatment through her art, find-
ing a creative outlet to interpret her experience
and share it with others.
But while stories like these should give us
hope, we still have a long way to go. There’s
currently no reliable screening test for ovarian
or prostate cancer, for example, and no effec-
tive targeted treatment for the most aggressive
forms of breast cancer, known as triple nega-
tive cancers.
What I’ve come to understand, as I’ve re-
flected on my own experiences and those of
others I’ve met, is that while we should con-
tinue to push for advancement, care is not just
about medical treatments. It’s also about the
safety, dignity and support afforded to women,
whether they’re battling cancer or trying to
manage other stressful situations. And far too
often they’re not given nearly enough.I’m often asked how my medical choices,
and being public about them, have affected
me. I simply feel I made choices to improve
my odds of being here to see my children grow
into adults, and of meeting my grandchildren.
My hope is to give as many years as I can
to their lives, and to be here for them. I have
lived over a decade now without a mom. She
met only a few of her grandchildren and was
often too sick to play with them. It’s hard now
for me to consider anything in this life di-
vinely guided when I think of how much their
lives would have benefited from time with her
and the protection of her love and grace. My
mother fought the disease for a decade and
made it into her 50s. My grandmother died in
her 40s. I’m hoping my choices allow me to
live a bit longer.
I have a patch for hormones, and I need to get
regular health checkups. I see and feel changes
in my body, but I don’t mind. I’m alive, and
for now I am managing all the different issuesThe care
women
really need
By Angelina Jolie
Medicaladvancesare onlyone part ofthe picture