Angelina Jolie reveals why she's showing her mastectomy scars now

Angelina Jolie is opening up about her decision to publicly show her mastectomy scars more than a decade after her preventive surgery.

The Oscar-winning actress, 50, spoke to TIME France about why she chose to share photos revealing the results of her double mastectomy, which she underwent in 2013.

“I share these scars with many women I love,” Jolie told the magazine. “And I'm always moved when I see other women share theirs.”

She explained that the timing felt right because the interview focuses on breast health awareness. “I wanted to join them, knowing that TIME France would be sharing information about breast health, prevention, and knowledge about breast cancer.”

Jolie previously revealed she carries the BRCA1 gene, which greatly increased her risk of breast cancer. In a 2013 New York Times op-ed titled My Medical Choice, she wrote, “The decision to have a mastectomy was not easy… But it is one I am very happy that I made.”

She later underwent surgery in 2015 to remove her ovaries and fallopian tubes to reduce her cancer risk.

In her new interview, the actress strongly encouraged access to genetic testing. “Every woman should always be able to determine her own healthcare journey,” she said, adding that screenings should be “accessible and affordable.”

Jolie also discussed her upcoming film Couture, directed by Alice Winocour, in which she plays a filmmaker diagnosed with breast cancer. “Too often, films about women's struggles — especially cancer — talk about endings and sadness, rarely about life,” she said.

The full interview will appear in the debut issue of TIME France, available December 18.