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Brad Pitt Responds to Melissa Etheridge’s Angelina Jolie Mastectomy Comments

1371559174_brad pitt angelina jolie melissa etheridge article
After Melissa Etheridge criticized Angelina Jolie's decision to get a preventative double mastectomy, Brad Pitt comes out in defense of his fiancee

Brad Pitt isn't thrilled with Melissa Etheridge's recent comments about Angelina Jolie's decision to get a preventative double mastectomy, but that doesn't mean he's going to badmouth his longtime friend in the press. At the World War Z premiere in New York City June 17, the actor told Us Weekly how he felt about the rocker recently telling The Washington Blade she felt Jolie made "the most fearful choice you can make when confronting anything with cancer."

Pitt hadn't heard about Etheridge's interview until just before the red carpet event. "I don't know," he told Us. "Somebody just said that."

Related: PHOTOS: How Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie built a life together

"Melissa's an old friend of mine," continued Pitt, who invited Etheridge to perform at his 2000 wedding to Jennifer Aniston. "I'm sure we'll talk on the phone. I don't know what it is."

Etheridge herself was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2004; she says she's been cancer-free for nine years. "I wouldn't call it a brave choice," the 52-year-old singer said of Jolie's decision to seek preventative medical attention. "My belief is that cancer comes from inside you and so much of it has to do with the environment of your body. It's the stress that will turn that gene on or not."

Related: PHOTOS: Angelina Jolie's style evolution

The Jolie-Pitts, however, clearly disagree. After the Academy Award winning actress opened up about her experience in a New York Times op-ed piece May 13, Pitt lauded his fiancee's heroism. "I think it's an individual decision and I found it very empowering instead of scary," he told Us June 17. "We experienced the exact opposite."

The Salt star decided to get the multi-operation procedure after discovering she had the BRCA gene mutation that often leads to the disease. Jolie had previously lost her mother and her uncle to cancer; her aunt Debbie lost her battle with breast cancer in late May.

Related: PHOTOS: Angelina Jolie's word travels

"Plenty of people have the gene mutation and everything but it never comes to cancer," Etheridge argued in her interview with The Washington Blade. "I would say to anybody faced with that, that choice is way down the line on the spectrum of what you can do and to really consider the advancements we've made in things like nutrition and stress levels."

Related: VIDEO: How Angelina Jolie avoided leading a

Despite Etheridge's criticism, many celebrities have come out in support of Jolie, including cancer survivors Sheryl Crow and Giuliana Rancic.

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