Angelina Jolie opens up about how her double mastectomy scars bring back memories of her children
Scars serve as an enduring memory of Angelina Jolie's life's struggle. The Oscar winner had a double mastectomy in 2013 when doctors found she had a gene that raises the risk of breast cancer, and she doesn't mind having some marks on her body from the procedure.
"I've always been someone more interested in the scars and the life that people carry," in a recent interview with France Inter, a French radio program, she stated. "I'm not drawn to some perfect idea of a life that has no scars."
The 50-year-old, who has twins Knox and Vivienne, 17, and children Maddox, 24, Pax, 22, Zahara, 21, and Shiloh, 19, with ex Brad Pitt, stated that the scars from the double mastectomy will always be a reminder of the "choice I made to do what I could do to stay here as long as I could with my children."
Register for Tekedia Mini-MBA edition 19 (Feb 9 – May 2, 2026).
Register for Tekedia AI in Business Masterclass.
Join Tekedia Capital Syndicate and co-invest in great global startups.
Register for Tekedia AI Lab.
"I'm grateful that I had the opportunity to have the choice to do something proactive about my health," Angelina went on to mention that her mother, Marcheline Bertrand, had passed away at the age of 56 in 2007 due to breast cancer. "I lost my mom very when I was young. I'm raising my children without a grandmother."
The Eternals alum continued, "[If] you get to the end of your life, and you haven't made mistakes, you haven't made a mess, you don't have scars, you haven't lived a full enough life."
After revealing her double mastectomy scars to Time France during her photo shoot, Angelina said, "I share these scars with many women I love."
"I'm always moved when I see other women share theirs," she added. "I wanted to join them."
The actress from Salt also discussed why she made her double mastectomy public, stating that the purpose of her 2013 New York Times opinion post on the preventative surgery was to "encourage informed choices."
"Every woman should always be able to determine her own healthcare journey and have the information she needs to make informed choices," Angelina continued. "Healthcare decisions must be personal, and women must have the information and support they need to make those choices."
