A study found that women with a higher waist-to-hip ratio have a higher risk of developing uterine cancer, according to the Guardian. A study published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) found that for every 0.1 increase in waist-to-hip ratio, the risk of uterine cancer increased by 21 percent. Experts at the World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF), which partially funded the study, said the results suggest a strong association between cancer and excessive waist circumference. The waist-to-hip ratio is calculated by using the waist circumference to the upper hip circumference. For example, someone with a waist circumference of 28 feet (71 cm) and a hip circumference of 40 feet (102 cm) would have a waist-to-hip ratio of 0.7. The study found that women who increased their waist-to-hip ratio from 0.7 to 0.8 had a 21 percent increased risk of developing uterine cancer. The example given above is equivalent to increasing her waist circumference from 28 feet to 32 feet (81cm), while her hip circumference remains the same. If the waist-to-hip ratio increases by 0.1, the risk of uterine cancer will increase. For women, a waist-to-hip ratio of more than 0.85 is considered obese, compared with 0.9 for men. The WCRF estimates that in the UK alone, about 25,000 cancers could be avoided each year if people maintained a healthy weight. Professor Konstantinos Tsilidis of Imperial College said, “These results show that maintaining a healthy weight is important for women because it reduces the risk of cancer.” Dr Panagiota Mitrou, WCRF’s research grant leader, said, “We know that excess waist fat can lead to a range of health problems, such as diabetes, but this important study has allowed us to learn that waist fat also affects cancer risk.” “It’s important to make people aware of the dangers of excess fat (especially around the waist). In addition to quitting smoking, maintaining a healthy weight is the best way for people to prevent cancer.” The study also found an association between waist-to-hip ratio and bowel and pancreatic cancers, but the association was not strong.