Angelina Jolie made headlines in 2013 when she publicly announced that she was undergoing a double mastectomy to prevent her chances of developing cancer.
The actress reached the decision after discovering that she had the BRCA1 gene, which greatly increases the risks of developing breast or ovarian cancer in later life.
She famously penned her personal experiences in a piece for the New York Times back in 2013: “I am writing about it now because I hope that other women can benefit from my experience. Cancer is still a word that strikes fear into people’s hearts, producing a deep sense of powerlessness."
She continued, “But today it is possible to find out through a blood test whether you are highly susceptible to breast and ovarian cancer, and then take action.”
And it seems her powerful message was well received by the public.
According to The Guardian, new research suggests that the actress sucessfully inspired more women to seek genetic testing.
In the British Medical Journal, Sunita Desai and Anupam Jena of Harvard Medical School, analysed data on US health insurance claims from over nine million women aged 18 and 64.
In just 15 days since Jolie’s public statement, it was revealed that daily rates of testing for harmful mutations in BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes rose by 64%. And the spike only continued to grow, as even six months after the article’s publication, average monthly testing rates were still 37% higher than in the four months previous.
Yet the study also highlights that despite positive change, overall mastectomy rates are still relatively low.
Desai explained: “The fact that mastectomy rates dropped after Angelina Jolie’s editorial suggests that that denominator of women who started getting the BRCA test became less appropriate for the BRCA test because they had a lower pre-test probability of having the mutation in the first place.”
There’s no doubt that the ‘Angelina Jolie Effect’ is real however, as her statement has been proven to be the catalyst for change.
Here’s to hoping that through continued awareness, more and more women will beat the devastating disease.
READ MORE: Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie's Relationship In Quotes