The world was shocked when actress Angelina Jolie publicly spoke about her decision to have a double mastectomy in order to greatly reduce her risk of developing breast cancer.
Jolie discovered she carried the mutation of the BRCA1 gene and decided on a prevemptive course of action. And now, the man who helped raised the actress has come forward to say that her mother, Marcheline Bertrand, who passed away at 56 from ovarian cancer, would have been proud of her "heroic" decision, according to Celebuzz.
"She's known for making movies and being one of the most beautiful actresses and that is her stock and trade for everything," said Bill Day, who lived with Bertrand and helped raise Jolie from the time she was 4-years old to 17."For a woman in that position to do what she did is very surprising. It's undeniably brave."
Day echoed the sentiments of Jolie's finace, Brad Pitt, who called Jolie's decision "heroic." Day told Celebuzz that if Jolie's mother were here today, she would "look at Angelina now as her hero. She'd be frightened for her, but at the same time, proud."
Day, a documentary filmmaker, watched cancer decimate the family, and when he first met Bertrand she was already going to great lengths of her own to ward off the disease, including "radically changing her diet and even turning to her own 'New Age' advisers."
"She freaked out," Day said. "She knew she had to change because her grandmother and mother all died at 45 or below. That will change you."
It definitely made a huge impact to Jolie, who lost her mother to cancer in 2007. Jolie's great-grandmother, grandparents and uncle have all passed away from cancer, and her aunt has been battling it for years.
In her recent emotional essay published to the New York Times, "My Medical Choice," Jolie explained that after doctors discovered that she carries a "faulty BRCA1 gene" which is thought to greatly increase the risk of developing breast and ovarian cancer, she decided to undergo preventative surgery to battle against the disease, in large part for the sake of her six young children.
She announced in the essay that she hopes to be an example for women to better understand their options surrounding breast and ovarian cancer prevention.
"She was always the mother hen-type. She was always a bright star. She was always an independent thinker," Day said. "And a lot of thinking went into this. She's making all the right moves, she's a sincere person and she continues to surprise us with the decisions she makes."
Jolie is also expecting to have further procedures, including a hysterectomy and an oophorectomy, "where the ovaries are removed to combat her raised odds of developing ovarian cancer which stand at 50%," according to dnaindia.com.
Click here to watch Celebuzz's video on Hollywood's reaction to Jolie's recent revelation.
What are your thoughts on Jolie having these preventative procedures done? Do you admire her bravery? Share below in the comments!
