The number of referrals for genetic testing of breast cancer risk has more than doubled in the UK following Angelina Jolie’s announcement that she underwent a double mastectomy after learning she tested positive for the gene mutation BRCA1.

No only did this increase occur immediately after her announcement last May, but it continued long afterwards as well.

It’s estimated that by the end of 2014, 232,670 new cases of breast cancer will have been diagnosed in the U.S. Among all cancer diagnoses, breast cancer will have accounted for 14 percent of them.

According to new research conducted by Gareth Evans, professor of clinical genetics at Genesis Breast Cancer Prevention and colleagues, more women have been asking their general practitioners to undergo such genetic counseling. The majority of these women were those with a family history of breast cancer, so the genetic counselling was founded.

“Angelina Jolie stating she has a BRCA1 mutation and going on to have a risk-reducing mastectomy is likely to have had a bigger impact than other celebrity announcements, possibly due to her image as a glamorous and strong woman. This may have lessened patients’ fears about a loss of sexual identity post-preventative surgery and encouraged those who had not previously engaged with health services to consider genetic testing,” said Evans in a statement.

This new research is published in the journal Breast Cancer Research.