What is the Relationship between Alcohol and Cancer?
Alcohol use is thought to account for approximately 3% to 4% of all cancer deaths each yearin the United States.
In the study conducted by Shutze et al. and published in 2011, more than 350,000 people in8 European countries were evaluated and it was concluded that alcohol use was responsiblefor 10% of cancers seen in men and 3% in women.
(The study conducted by Schutze M, Boeing H, Pischon T, et al. Alcohol attributable burden of incidence of cancer in eight European countries based on results from prospective study. BMJ. 2011;342:d1584.)
According to the compilation of Nelson et al. published in the American Journal of Public Health;
The purpose of the study is to provide estimates of alcohol-related cancer deaths and potential years lostin the United States.
U.S. death data from 2009 were obtained from the Vital Statistics System based on the internationalclassification of disease classes for each of the 7 cancers (cancer of the mouth, pharynx, larynx,esophagus, liver, colon, rectum, and breast).
Relative Risk has been established from meta-analyses since 2000 for alcohol use and cancer risk.
Overall, it was found that alcohol use accounted for about 3.5% of all cancer deaths in 2009, orabout 19,500 people.
Although people who consume more than 40 grams of alcohol per day (‡ 3 drinks) on average have ahigher risk of cancer and more frequent alcohol-related cancer deaths, approximately 30% of alcoholattributed cancer deaths occurred in people who consumed 20 grams or less of alcohol daily.About 15% of breast cancer deaths among women in the United States are due to alcohol consumption.
In addition to the risks of high consumption, their findings show that the regular alcohol consumptionat low levels is also associated with an increased risk of cancer.
Types of cancer related to alcohol use;
Mouth
Pharynx
Larynx
Esophagus
Liver
Colon and rectum
Breast
Alcohol can also increase the risk of pancreatic cancer. The risk for each of these cancers increases asthe amount of alcohol consumed
Types of cancer related to alcohol use;
Damage to body tissues
Low folate levels or other nutrients
Effect on estrogen or other hormones
Effect on body weight
Interaction with tobacco use
Psychosocial effects
In general, the amount of alcohol consumed over time, not the type of alcoholic beverage, seems to bethe most important factor in increasing cancer risk.
Most evidence suggests it's the ethanol that increases the risk, not the other stuff in the drink.
Alcohol Control Strategies;
The 63rd World Health Assembly of the World Health Organization adopted the WHA63.13 resolution in2010 and approved the global strategy to reduce the harmful use of alcohol. The World Health Organizationurged Member States to appropriately adopt and implement the global strategy.Measures to restrict the demand supply of alcohol;
