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Written By: Editorial Team | Published : November 29, 2013 12:03 PM IST
Actress Angelina Jolie, who underwent double mastectomy earlier this year, has lent support a new cancer charity - Marcheline Debra and Raleigh Foundation, set up by her family.
The organisation will be named after her mother Marcheline, aunt and uncle, who all died of cancer, releaved her uncle Ron Martin. (Read:
'Angelina's father Jon Voight will be involved, her brother James (Haven) will be on board. Angelina will help. She and (fiance) Brad Pitt are humanitarians. It is something so close to home,' femalefirst.co.uk quoted Martin as saying.
The actress' family is proud of the way she uses her celebrity status to do humanitarian work and raise awareness of good causes. They believe that her mother would have been particularly proud of her daughter, following her receipt of the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award at the recent Governors Awards. (Read: 'Unlike Angelina Jolie, Indian women wary of mastectomy')
'It's great that she uses her star power in the right way. Her mother believed life was meaningful if you gave back. She would have been very proud of her receiving that award.
'I hope Angelina inspires with the message she gives. It means a lot to her to be acknowledged. She speaks from the heart,' said Jolie's cousin Francis Bertrand.
What is a preventive mastectomy and why is it needed?
Also known as prophylactic or risk reducing mastectomy, it involves removing both breasts in order to reduce the chances of breast cancer in the future. A preventive mastectomy is recommended for women who are at a very high risk of suffering from the disease. The risk factor for a woman is decided by certain tests that detect the genetic mutation within certain genes. In Angelina Jolie's case, it was the BRCA1 gene.
What is the BRCA1 gene?
There are two genes that make a woman susceptible to breast cancer the BRCA1 and BRCA2 gene. The BRCA1 gene is a type of tumor suppressor gene. It is named the breast cancer, early onset gene and its main function is to repair damaged DNA. The gene is primarily found in the breast tissue and is largely responsible for breast cancer, ovarian cancer and cervical cancer in women. The mutation of this gene results in a malformation or broken DNA which then leads to the formation of a cancer. (Read more: Angelina Jolie's preventive double mastectomy your questions answered)
With inputs from IANS
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