Angelina Jolie has shared her thoughts on why she feels ‘grateful’ for the scars from her double mastectomy.
In 2013, Jolie underwent a bilateral mastectomy, a procedure to remove both breasts. During an interview with TIME France last year, the 50-year-old actress discussed her choice to have the surgery.
The star of Netflix’s Maria revealed that she wasn’t exhibiting any symptoms of breast cancer, but she learned she carried the BRCA1 gene, which significantly increases the likelihood of developing breast or ovarian cancer.
Jolie opted for the surgery as a preventative measure. In a conversation with France Inter, she elaborated on her feelings toward the scars left by the operation.
In a TikTok clip shared by France Inter on February 10, Jolie states she’s ‘always been someone more interested in the scars and the life that people carry’.
“I’ve never found it, I don’t, I’m not drawn to some perfect idea of a life that has no scars,” she mentioned.
Reflecting on her scars, the actor described them as ‘a choice’ she made ‘to do what [she] could do to stay here as long as [she] could with [her] children’. She expressed her affection for her scars ‘because of that’.
Jolie is a mother to Maddox, 24, Pax, 22, Zahara, 21, Shiloh, 19, Knox, 17, and Vivienne, 17, sharing them with her ex-husband Brad Pitt.
In her earlier chat with TIME France, Jolie expressed that she doesn’t ‘say everybody should do it that way’, but she values having ‘the choice’ and stands by her decision, stating she does not ‘regret’ it.
The Wanted actress added she feels ‘grateful’ for having ‘the opportunity to have the choice’ and to ‘do something proactive’ about her health, drawing from her experiences with her late mother, actress Marcheline Bertrand.
Bertrand passed away in 2007 at the age of 56 due to complications from ovarian and breast cancer.
She remarked: “I lost my mum when I was young and I’m raising my children without a grandmother.”
Jolie concluded with France Inter: “I think this is life. If you get to the end of your life and you haven’t made mistakes, you haven’t made a mess, you don’t have scars – you haven’t lived a full enough life.”
If these issues resonate with you and you wish to talk in confidence, reach out to the American Cancer Society at 1-800-227-2345 or utilize their live chat feature, which is available 24/7 every day of the year.