File photo of Allyn Rose, Miss Maryland (© Julie Jacobson/AP)

Miss America contestant plans double mastectomy after competition

11/17/2012

She may be waiting until after the swimsuit competition, but Miss America contestant Allyn Rose says that she will be going ahead with a preventative double mastectomy in order to reduce her risk of breast cancer. The 24-year-old Maryland native's mother was diagnosed with the disease at 27, and Rose says that her family carries a specific genetic mutation that makes them susceptible to breast cancer. Although Rose's tests are currently negative, she has decided not to take any chances. "The idea that I could wake up one day and not have the same body that I did the night before is scary," she says, "But ... I'm not going to let my fear of losing this part of my femininity stop me from living." [Source]

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