Trends in Use of Risk-Reducing Mastectomy in a Context of Celebrity Decisions and Media Coverage: An Observational Study in the United States and Australia.

OBJECTIVE: To examine trends in risk-reducing mastectomy (RRM) and immediate breast reconstruction in New York State and New South Wales, especially before and after Angelina Jolie's announcement of her surgery in 2013.

DATA SOURCE: Hospital discharge data, 2004-2014.

STUDY DESIGN: Trends in procedures were assessed using Poisson regression and the Cochrane-Armitage test.

DATA EXTRACTION METHODS: Extracted using procedure codes.

PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: There was an increase in RRM procedures after May 2013 in both regions, with a peak during late 2013-early 2014. The average bimonthly RRM procedures were significantly higher after Jolie's announcement than before.

CONCLUSIONS: In both countries, we found a substantial increase of RRM after Jolie's announcement, highlighting the impact of celebrity health care coverage on preventive surgical choice and the need for decision aids to assist patients.