It wasn't an easy decision, but one I'm glad I made

Enders' Kara had a double mastectomy after cancer gene found

- JANINE YAQOOB

KARA Tointon has revealed that she had a double mastectomy after learning she was a carrier of a high-risk cancer gene.

The 41-year-old former EastEnders star, who won Strictly in 2010, opted for preventative surgery, which included having her fallopian tubes removed, because she had the BRCA1 gene.

In a video post, Kara said: "It wasn't an easy decision, but one I'm very glad and lucky I made, and I can now, with hindsight, talk about it properly."

She took the gene test in 2018 after her mum Carol had been diagnosed with ovarian cancer. Carol died in 2019 and Kara decided to have the preventative surgery after having her two children, Frey, now six, and Helly, four.

Kara said: "You may have heard of the BRCA genes 1 and 2 and, as a carrier, it means I am at a greater risk of both breast and ovarian cancer. Back in 2018, when my mum was under-going treatment for ovarian cancer, I was asked to take a genetics test.