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Editorial
December 6, 2018

Normal Weight Adiposity and Postmenopausal Breast Cancer Risk

Author Affiliations
  • 1Division of Medical Oncology and Hematology, Department of Medicine, Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Mount Sinai Hospital, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
  • 2Division of Clinical Epidemiology, Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Mount Sinai Hospital, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
JAMA Oncol. 2019;5(2):150-151. doi:10.1001/jamaoncol.2018.5162

Adipose tissue is recognized as an active metabolic organ, with excess adiposity associated with endocrine and metabolic attributes, including insulin resistance, altered adipokines (higher leptin and lower adiponectin levels), inflammation, and higher estrogen levels. Many of these factors, in addition to obesity, which is defined as a BMI (body mass index, calculated as weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared) of 30 or higher, have been linked to an increased risk of breast cancer, notably in postmenopausal women.1,2

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