Suburban Sydney mum Krystal Barter and Angelina Jolie have a lot in common.
They both have striking looks and are both mothers with supportive partners. They also both carry the breast cancer gene, BRCA1.
In 2009, at the age of 25, Barter underwent a preventative double mastectomy and it was from her hospital bed that the Sydneysider started the advocacy organisation Pink Hope.
After growing up with a mother and grandmother who both developed cancer, mum-of-three Barter was determined to do things differently.
It's an issue that the US actress, who lost her mother to cancer, also faced when she too revealed last May that she had a mastectomy.
"Angelina blew (the issue) into the stratosphere," Barter says.
"The most beautiful woman in the world - the most famous woman in the world - and then she became known as one of us."
Both Barter and Jolie have also decided to remove their ovaries.
Barter tells her story in her book The Lucky One, which was launched by the PM's wife Margie Abbott, a fellow northern beaches mum, in Sydney on Monday.
The book tells a story of love, courage and transformation. It covers Barter's troubled teenage years and struggle with drugs as well as falling in love with her husband Chris and discovering she was pregnant at only 21.
She also writes about her dreams for Pink Hope and her determination to now raise awareness in the fight against ovarian cancer.
The Lucky One, by Krystal Barter is published by Allen & Unwin, RRP $29.99
