by Honor Whiteman (medicalnewstoday.com, September 19, 2014)

In May last year, actress Angelina Jolie announced she underwent a double mastectomy to reduce the risk of breast cancer after testing positive for a BRCA1 gene mutation. According to a new study, this announcement triggered a significant rise in the number women with a family history of breast cancer being tested for the mutation, and this increase persisted for the next 5 months. The research team, led by Gareth Evans of Genesis Breast Cancer Prevention and St. Mary’s Hospital in the UK, says their findings show that when it comes to health news, a story involving a high-profile celebrity can have a positive and long-lasting effect on health care among the general public. Continua la lettura di Angelina effect: health news of celebrities ‘has long-term effects for public health care’ →