Angelina Jolie Pitt's breast surgery increased women's awareness for reconstructive breast surgery options, according to a new study from Austria.
Many researchers and media stories have speculated on this, but the new scientific study is the first prospective to look at the impact of Jolie Pitt's announcement.
Jolie had both of her breasts removed in May 2013 because she has a gene mutation that increased her risk for breast cancer, right after this she underwent breast reconstruction surgery.
Researchers conducted online surveys with 1,000 women before and after Jolie went public about her surgeries. After her announcement, 4 percent more women were aware that reconstructive breast surgery is possible after one or both breasts are removed.
The largest increase the researchers observed was in women's awareness that breast reconstruction surgery can be done during same operation as the breast removal surgery.
In the second poll, 59.5 percent of participants said they were aware that both surgeries could be done together, up from 40.5 percent in the first poll, according to the study.
In addition, 11 percent more women were aware that breast reconstruction can be done using a woman's own tissue, and 19 percent more were aware that reconstruction can be done during the breast-removal operation.
In the second survey, one-fifth of participants said media coverage about Jolie's surgeries made them "deal more intensively with the topic of breast cancer," according to Dr. David Benjamin Lumenta of the division of plastic, esthetic and reconstructive surgery at the Medical University of Graz, Austria, and colleagues.
"Since individual choice will become a driving force for patient-centred decision-making in the future, cancer specialists should be aware of public opinion when consulting patients with breast cancer," explained Dr Lumenta in business-standard.
Their study was published online on September 28 in the journal Cancer.
The findings suggest that media coverage can help improve the public's knowledge about a particular health topic, the researchers said.