Angelina Jolie Doubled the Number of British Women Getting Screened for Breast Cancer

It was just announced that Angelina Jolie has single-handedly inspired enough women in England to visit breast cancer clinics for screenings that the number has doubled since she announced her brave double mastectomy last year.

“The Angelina Jolie effect has been long-lasting and global, and appears to have increased referrals to centres appropriately,” a medical team from the University of Manchester told the BBC.

“Angelina Jolie stating she has a BRCA1 mutation and going on to have a risk-reducing mastectomy is likely to have had a bigger impact than other celebrity announcements, possibly due to her image as a glamorous and strong woman,” Prof Evans, head of the team, said. “This may have lessened patients’ fears about a loss of sexual identity post-preventative surgery and encouraged those who had not previously engaged with health services to consider genetic testing.”