'Angelina Jolie Effect' Still Having an Impact on Breast Cancer
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- Published on Wednesday, 30 October 2013 11:32
- Written by Yahoo ! News
In May, actress Angelina Jolie stunned the world when she revealed that she'd undergone a preventive double mastectomy after genetic testing showed she was at a high risk for developing breast and ovarian cancer.Since her disclosure, there has been a marked increase in genetic testing at treatment centers across the country, according to the National Society of Genetic Counselors. The increase is being called "the Angelina Jolie effect," although one doctor sees it a bit differently. "I really think of it as the Angelina gift, it is really kicking up the whole conversation," said Dr. Marisa Weiss, director of breast health outreach at Lankenau Medical Center in Wynnewood, Pa., and president and founder of Breastcancer.org.Jolie revealed in a New York Times Op-Ed she made her decision to have a mastectomy after discovering she carries the BRCA1 gene mutation, the single rare gene mutation that produces a high risk of developing cancer.One in 800 to one in 1,400 women are carriers of this mutation and the BRCA 1 and BRCA2 gene mutations account for between five and 10 percent of all breast cancer cases, according to the National Cancer Institute.
As Breast Cancer Awareness Month kicks off today, the doctor who performed Jolie's double mastectomy, Dr. Kristi Funk, of the Pink Lotus Breast Cancer Center in Beverly Hills, is speaking out about what every woman should know about the BRCA gene mutation and breast cancer."Genetic testing is easily done through a blood sample or just a swish-and-spit with Scope," Funk said today on a special "go pink" edition of " Good Morning America.""The question becomes difficult when you try to say who is appropriate for testing so that is where the education really needs to step up," said Funk, who also believes that many more people may carry a BRCA mutation than current estimates suggest. "Of all Americans, one million of us carry a BRCA1 mutation but it will take 19 million high-risk people to find the one million. And those 18 million people then who don't have BRCA1 are high enough risk to test." Funk's Pink Lotus clinic offers a five-question assessment on its website that takes one minute to complete and determines if testing is right for you.The genetic risks for the BRCA1 gene mutation, according to Funk, go all the way back to third generation relatives on both the maternal and paternal sides of a woman's family."What you're looking for is for one of those relatives to either have breast cancer prior to age 50 or ovarian cancer at any age," Funk said on "GMA." "Dad can pass this gene down too." According to Breastcancer.org, a number of steps can lower someone's breast-cancer risk immediately. Those include limiting alcohol intake, maintaining a healthy weight, exercising three to four hours per week and avoiding cooking in plastics.
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Angelina Jolie Shops in Queensland with the Kids!
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- Published on Sunday, 27 October 2013 08:50
- Written by Just Jared
Angelina Jolie holds her five-year-old son Knox‘s hand while going shopping with her twins on Sunday afternoon (October 27) in Queensland, Australia.The 38-year-old actress also brought along Vivienne and Pax to pick up some party balloons. Perhaps she is planning a Halloween party for the family this weekend?Earlier in the week, Angelina was spotted on the set of her film Unbroken, which she is currently directing down under in Australia.Brad Pitt‘s new movie The Counselor, in which he has a supporting role, opened in theaters this weekend and unfortunately isn’t expected to do well at the box office with just $9 million. It also received a dreaded “D” CinemaScore from audiences, according to Deadline.
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Angelina Jolie Thinks Brad Pitt Stinks
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- Published on Friday, 25 October 2013 17:25
- Written by Showbiz Spy
BRAD Pitt is too stinky for Angelina Jolie! he actor has sworn off soap, and has instead been using a homemade concoction of lemons, water and apple cider vinegar. “Brad says he’s read up on the toxins of soap – especially the antibacterial ones – and feels that using them and antiperspirants is not only bad for the planet, but it also speeds up the aging process in humans,” said an insider. “But Angie was revolted, and their kids even started calling him ‘Stinky Daddy.’ Angie agreed to humor him only as long as they weren’t on the same continent. “Angelina told him he ‘smelled like a sheepdog’.” Meanwhile, Brad is furious that Angelina is wooing a sexy Japanese rock star to play the villain in her new film — because he looks like the actress’ former lesbian lover! Despite having little or no acting experience, Angelina, 38, cast Japanese rocker Miyavi – whose real name is Takamasa Ishihara – to play the choice role of ruthless, sadistic prison guard Mutsuhiro Watanabe in Unbroken, which she’s filming in Australia. “Angelina was absolutely hypnotized by Miyavi’s haunting audition for her film,” said a source, adding that she couldn’t stop talking about the gender-bending rocker, who loves to wear makeup, reports the National Enquirer. “Miyavi bears a striking resemblance to Angie’s former lesbian lover Jenny Shimizu – and that fact wasn’t lost on Brad.” Angelina hooked up with Shimizu in 1996, gushing that she “fell in love with her the first second I saw her.” And in 2005, Shimizu claimed her affair with Angie lasted many years. “Angie told Brad that she’d probably have to spend a lot of time coaching Miyavi because he’s never had a major Hollywood role before,” the source continued. “That sent Brad over the edge. He’s halfway around the world in England while Angie’s reading lines with this sexy Asian rocker. “She told Brad that, as outrageous as Miyavi looks and acts, with all his tattoos and piercings, he’s actually a down-to-earth family man. Still, Angie gushed so much about Miyavi, it drove Brad bonkers.” Despite Angie’s assurances that there’s nothing to worry about with Miyavi, Brad is planning to keep a close eye on her, said the source. “He’s insisting that they Skype every day – even though Sydney is 10 hours ahead of London,” blabbed the mole.
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Jai Courtney Tapped For Angelina Jolie’s ‘Unbroken’, Russell Crowe’s ‘Water Diviner’
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- Published on Friday, 25 October 2013 10:24
- Written by Deadline
Jai Courtney is in high demand with Oscar-winning actors-turned-directors; he has signed to co-star in the films directed by Angelina Jolie and Russell Crowe. He’ll start with Unbroken, the film Jolie is directing for Universal based on the unbreakable spirit of Louis Zamperini, the former Olympic track prodigy who endured unimaginable hardship as a WWII POW at the hands of Japanese prison guards. Courtney will play Hugh ‘Cup’ Cuppernell, a WWII veteran pilot who gets caught in tenacious midair gunfight alongside Zamperini, who’s played by Jack O’Connell.Courtney will then move to The Water Diviner, Crowe’s feature directorial debut about an Australian man who travels to Turkey to attempt to locate the bodies of his three sons, who were killed there during WWI. Courtney portrays Lt-Col Cecil Hilton, the smart, efficient soldier tasked with organizing the effort to identify the tens of thousands of soldiers killed at Gallipoli. He reluctantly allows Connors to stay and look for his sons’ bodies. Crowe and Olga Kurylenko are also starring.Courtney most recently completed Divergent, which Summit Entertainment will release in March, and Felony, the drama written by Joel Edgerton, who stars. That pic premiered at Toronto last month. Courtney is coming off Die Another Day and Jack Reacher. He’s repped by UTA, manager Sam Maydew at Silver Linings Entertainment, and Australian agent Mark Morrissey & Associates.
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Angelina Jolie: Hard at Work on 'Unbroken' Set!
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- Published on Thursday, 24 October 2013 04:33
- Written by Just Jared
Angelina Jolie chats with some crew members while hard at work on the set of her latest film Unbroken on Monday (October 21) in Queensland, Australia.The 38-year-old actress, who is directing the movie, had a blue screen set up outdoors for some special effects! Angelina‘s doctor who performed her double mastectomy earlier this year has spoken out about women needing to be in charge of their healthcare. “A woman is the captain of her own health care team, and the doctors involved should be co-captains with her, working with her to help achieve the best outcomes,” Dr. Jay Orringer told Fox News about Angelina‘s proactive decisions.
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