(CNN) - A new study shows that when it comes to certain types of breast cancer, where you carry that weight, may be even more important.
Excess body fat levels in post-menopausal women have been linked to a higher risk in breast cancer, according to a new study published in the medical journal JAMA Oncology,
researchers saw that those women who carried more weight, were at double the risk of developing estrogen-dependent breast cancer.
These cancers, called ER-positive breast cancer in the study, occur when the receptor proteins attach to the estrogen hormone and rely on it to grow.
Nearly 3500 post-menopausal women between 50 and 79 years old, had their body composition measured at the beginning of the study.
Of those women, 146 developed ER-positive breast cancer.
Researchers found that those with an 11-pound increase in overall body fat, had a 35-percent increased risk of getting that cancer
And if they carried that 11-pounds mainly in their midsection, their risk went up to 56-percent.
Increased fat in their torso also increased their risk of developing invasive breast cancer by 46-percent.
This was even the case with those that fell under a normal body mass index.
The study authors say this signals a shift from simply looking at one's BMI, to instead focusing on where the person's excess fat is concentrated.
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