Alcohol linked to 4% of new cancer cases worldwide

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Jul 15, 2021 06:00 am

PARIS: Alcohol consumption was linked to 4 per cent of all new global cancer cases last year, according to a study published yesterday.

Men accounted for more than three-quarters of the estimated cases, which were mainly linked to risky or heavy drinking, although one in seven of these alcohol-related cancers was linked to moderate consumption of around two drinks a day.

The study, published in the journal The Lancet Oncology, estimated that there were more than 6.3 million cases last year of mouth, pharynx, voice box larynx, oesophageal, colon, rectum, liver, and breast cancer - all of which have established links to alcohol.

They estimated that 4 per cent (741,300) of all new cases of cancer around the world last year were associated with alcohol consumption, with men accounting for around 77 per cent (568,700 cases) of these and women 23 per cent.

"We urgently need to raise awareness about the link between alcohol consumption and cancer risk among policymakers and the general public," said study author Harriet Rumgay of the International Agency for Research on Cancer in France. - AFP