What to know about alcohol consumption and cancer risk

By MAYO CLINIC NEWS NETWORK (TNS)

The Office of the Surgeon General recently released a new Advisory on Alcohol and Cancer Risk. It outlines a connection between drinking alcohol and increased risk of cancer, specifically cancers of the mouth, throat, voice box, esophagus, breast, liver and colon.

The advisory has recommendations to increase awareness, including updating the existing Surgeon General’s health warning label on alcohol-containing beverages.

According to Dr. Donald Hensrud, a Mayo Clinic physician specializing in preventive medicine and nutrition, the number of cancer cases caused by drinking alcohol may surprise you.

“About 100,000 cases of cancer each year in the United States are due to alcohol consumption – and about 20,000 deaths. So this isn’t a small problem,” says Dr. Hensrud.

He says alcohol is the third-leading preventable cause of cancer in the U.S., behind tobacco use and obesity.

“The risk starts with actually relatively low intakes of alcohol over a long period of time,” says Dr. Hensrud. “Consuming it once in a while probably isn’t going to increase the risk that much. But there are many people who consume it regularly, and there are many people who assume that there are health benefits on the heart. And these benefits probably aren’t as strong as what we used to believe.”

He says when drinking alcohol is combined with tobacco use, the risk of cancer increases significantly.

“Some studies have suggested the optimal amount of alcohol for people less than 50 is zero. So we need to dial back, I think, a little bit on our alcohol consumption. Be aware of it. An occasional drink of alcohol is not going to increase long-term risk, but we need to be aware of it and keep a lid on our consumption over time,” says Dr. Hensrud.

Mirko Vitali / Dreamstime / TNS