WASHINGTON – In an op-ed for the New York Times, actress Angelina Jolie revealed Tuesday she quietly underwent a double mastectomy as a preventative measure against breast cancer.

In the article, Jolie says her mother died from cancer at age 56.

“My doctors estimated that I had an 87 percent risk of breast cancer and a 50 percent risk of ovarian cancer, although the risk is different in the case of each woman,” writes Jolie.

In the piece, Jolie described the surgery and medical procedures which accompanied it, saying the entire process took three months. However, she was able to continue with her work during the time.

Her chances of breast cancer now, Jolie writes, are under 5 percent.

Read the full op-ed from the New York Times here.

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