A woman preparing to have a double mastectomy this summer to avoid the risk of getting breast cancer has praised the “courageous” decision by Angelina Jolie to do the same.

Jolie revealed yesterday she had been through the operation after discovering she carried the BRCA 1 gene that can cause the disease.

Bobbie Lamden, 31, from Haywards Heath, said she understood all too well what the star would have gone through.

Because of the family history of cancer, Ms Lamden knew she was high risk but felt that knowledge was power and was keen to have genetic testing.

In November 2010 her mother Della found out she had the BRCA 1 gene and six weeks later Ms Lamden herself discovered she was also a carrier.

Since then Ms Lamden has had two MRIs and two mammograms.

She found a small lump in her left breast after one of the MRI scans and had a biopsy on the same day.

Although the lump was not cancerous, it made Ms Lamden realise how mentally draining it would be constantly wondering if she might follow the same path as her mother and her grandmother.

She said: “It was really mentally draining.

“I realised that I didn’t want to do this every time.

“It was at this stage I decided to make the decision to have a preventative double mastectomy and reconstructive surgery.”

She added: “I understand that because of Angelina Jolie, there is going to be a lot more awareness about this issue and it is important that it is discussed but people need to be aware this is not an easy process and there are many steps to go through before reaching this point.”

Ms Lamden will be having the procedure at Queen Victoria Hospital East Grinstead in July.

Professor Peter Johnson, Cancer Research UK’s chief clinician, said: “Only a small proportion of women who develop breast cancer – about one in 20 – do so because they’ve inherited a faulty gene from one of their parents.

“But it’s important that women who do carry these genes know that – thanks to decades of research and trials – there are now things they can do to reduce their risk.

“Having surgery is just one of several options – they can also have regular monitoring and screening with techniques like MRI scans.

“If you’re worried about having breast or ovarian cancer running in your family you should speak to your GP about whether you should consider genetic testing.”