Kelly Osbourne is no stranger to cancer so when news broke that Angelina Jolie underwent surgery to remove her ovaries and fallopian tubes to address an early form of cancer, Osbourne was vocal of her support.
Kelly's mother Sharon survived colon cancer in 2002. And when she found out 10 years later that she had the breast cancer gene, she elected for a double mastectomy. Kelly is at risk of developing cancer because she carries the gene mutation predisposing her to the disease. According to her, Sharon had everyone in the family tested after finding out that she herself was carrying the gene.
The former Fashion Police host empathizes with the difficult decision Jolie had to make, saying she ultimately would do the same thing and take advantage of preventive surgery.
"I know that one day I will eventually have to do it too because if I have children, I want to be there to bring them up. I want to be there to support them in every way I can," said Osbourne.
As a child of a cancer survivor, she also understands how the disease can take its toll on children. Preventing the disease through surgery then could help in letting children avoid unnecessary stress.
In 2013, Jolie chose to have preventive double mastectomy after she found out that she has the BRCA1 gene mutation. The actress has a history of cancer in the family (her mother, aunt and grandmother died from the disease) so having the gene puts her breast cancer risk at 87 percent while her risk of getting ovarian cancer was at 50 percent.
Jolie has been open about her fight with cancer because she wants women at risk to know that they have options. She was already decided on removing her ovaries and fallopian tubes to address her ovarian cancer risk but the process was hurried along when she found out earlier in March that the results of a blood test showed possible indicators of early cancer.
However, Jolie clarified that she didn't do it simply because she was at risk.
"A positive BRCA test does not mean a leap to surgery. The most important thing is to learn about the options and choose what is right for you personally," she said.
Deciding to get preventive surgery is not easy but it does make it possible for everyone, not just women, to be in control of their health, tackling issues head on.
Photo: Eva Rinaldi | Flickr
