A personalised risk assessment clinic set up to deal with the demand for genetic testing at the time is now busy fielding calls after the actress shared her decision to also have her ovaries and fallopian tubes removed.

Jolie - who lost her mother, grandmother and aunt to cancer - was diagnosed with a gene mutation which gave her an estimated 87 per cent risk of breast cancer and 50 per cent risk of ovarian cancer.

About one in 800 Australian women are believed to have a BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene fault which increases the risk of developing breast and ovarian/fallopian tube cancer.

Despite the demand for genetic testing, few women are eligible for it to be publicly funded.

A spokeswoman for the Wollongong Hereditary Cancer Clinic, based at Wollongong Hospital, said women needed to fulfil national testing criteria to get access to public testing.

"It should be remembered that faults in the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes, which are associated with a significantly increased risk of breast and ovarian cancer, are uncommon even in families with multiple cases of breast cancer," the spokeswoman said.

"For this reason, genetic testing for BRCA1 or BRCA2 faults is only performed after a full genetic assessment of the family at a genetic counselling service."

The spokeswoman urged Illawarra women with concerns to speak to their GP who would provide a referral to the clinic if appropriate.

"The clinic assesses personal and family history and provides genetic testing where suitable," she said. "The clinic also helps individuals make health decisions about how best to manage their risk."

Cancer Council NSW support unit manager Lorna O'Brien applauded Jolie for raising awareness of genetic testing. "It gets people to start thinking about their bodies and asking questions about their health," she said.

Ms O'Brien said the organisation had been inundated with calls after Jolie's initial announcement and expected women to again be keen for information.

"We advise women to be aware of their risk factors - to look at their age, their family history and their lifestyle; to know their body and to have a good GP," she said.

"Some examples of where genetic testing may be suitable is if a blood relative has received genetic testing that shows they have a faulty gene; or where three relatives on the same side of the family in at least two generations have been diagnosed with breast or ovarian cancer."

Ms O'Brien said ovarian cancer was less common than breast cancer, however it led to 933 deaths in Australia in 2012.

"Surgery to remove ovaries and fallopian tubes on the basis of genetic susceptibility to illness is a complex issue and Cancer Council NSW recommends anyone considering this form of surgery seek expert advice."