Angelina Jolie has publicly shown off her mastectomy scars for the first time since she underwent a preventive double mastectomy in 2013.
The 50-year-old opened up about the powerful reason behind her decision in a new interview with TIME France.
"I share these scars with many women I love," she said. "And I'm always moved when I see other women share theirs.
"I wanted to join them, knowing that TIME France would be sharing information about breast health, prevention, and knowledge about breast cancer."
On the cover, Angelina poses in a low-cut black sweater, subtly covering one breast with her hand. Photos of her double mastectomy scars will accompany the full interview, published December 18.
Angelina had a preventive double mastectomy in 2013 after learning that she carried the BRCA1 gene – which increased her risk for developing breast and ovarian cancer.
"I did choose to have that [surgery] because I lost my mother and my grandmother very young," she told us at the San Sebastian Film Festival for the European premiere of her latest film, Couture.
"I have the BRCA gene, so I chose to have a double mastectomy a decade ago," she continued. "And then I've also had my ovaries removed, because that's what took my mother." Her mother, the actress Marcheline Bertrand, was 56 when she died.
"Those are my choices," Angelina added. "I don't say everybody should do it that way, but it's important to have the choice. And I don't regret it."
© Getty ImagesPreventative surgery
At the time of her surgery, Angelina penned a powerful article for the New York Times, revealing she underwent three months of operations to remove breast tissue and replace it with implants.
In the article entitled My Medical Choice, Angelina said that her mother had fought cancer for nearly a decade before passing away. "She held out long enough to meet the first of her grandchildren and to hold them in her arms," she wrote at the time.
© Getty Images"But my other children will never have the chance to know her and experience how loving and gracious she was."
The Oscar-winner had sought to reassure her children that the same illness would not take her away from them, "but the truth is I carry a 'faulty' gene, BRCA1, which sharply increases my risk of developing breast and ovarian cancer."
© Getty ImagesShe said once she "knew that this was my reality," she decided to undergo the complex surgery, which has seen her chances of developing breast cancer drop from 87 per cent to under five per cent.
She began the medical procedures at the start of February 2013, and they were completed on April 27. "I can tell my children that they don't need to fear they will lose me to breast cancer," Angelina said.
© Getty Images"It is reassuring that they see nothing that makes them uncomfortable. They can see my small scars, and that's it. Everything else is just Mommy, the same as she always was. And they know that I love them and will do anything to be with them as long as I can."
She added: "On a personal note, I do not feel any less of a woman. I feel empowered that I made a strong choice that in no way diminishes my femininity."
