New study links moderate alcohol use with higher cancer risk
One in four new breast cancers and one in five colon cancers in Canada attributed to alcohol

Date:
July 14, 2021
Source:
Centre for Addiction and Mental Health
Summary:
A new study has found an association between alcohol and a
substantially higher risk of several forms of cancer, including
breast, colon, and oral cancers. Increased risk was evident
even among light to moderate drinkers (up to two drinks a day),
who represented 1 in 7 of all new cancers in 2020 and more than
100,000 cases worldwide.



FULL STORY ==========================================================================
A new study from the World Health Organization's (WHO) International
Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), published in the journal Lancet
Oncology, has found an association between alcohol and a substantially
higher risk of several forms of cancer, including breast, colon, and oral cancers. Increased risk was evident even among light to moderate drinkers
(up to two drinks a day), who represented 1 in 7 of all new cancers in
2020 and more than 100,000 cases worldwide.


==========================================================================
In Canada, alcohol use was linked to 7,000 new cases of cancer in 2020, including 24 per cent of breast cancer cases, 20 per cent of colon
cancers, 15 per cent of rectal cancers, and 13 per cent of oral and
liver cancers.

"All drinking involves risk," said study co-author Dr. Ju"rgen Rehm,
Senior Scientist, Institute for Mental Health Policy Research and Campbell Family Mental Health Research Institute at CAMH. "And with alcohol-related cancers, all levels of consumption are associated with some risk. For
example, each standard sized glass of wine per day is associated with a
6 per cent higher risk for developing female breast cancer." "Alcohol consumption causes a substantial burden of cancer globally," said Dr.

Isabelle Soerjomataram, Deputy Branch Head, Cancer Surveillance Branch
at IARC.

"Yet the impact on cancers is often unknown or overlooked, highlighting
the need for implementation of effective policy and interventions to
increase public awareness of the link between alcohol use and cancer
risk, and decrease overall alcohol consumption to prevent the burden
of alcohol-attributable cancers." Dr. Leslie Buckley, CAMH Chief of Addictions, added: "In our clinic we are seeing many people who report increased alcohol use since the onset of the pandemic. Although this
may be related to temporary stressors, there is a potential for new
habits to become more permanent. The consequences with alcohol use are
often subtle harms initially that take time to show themselves, while
long-term consequences such as cancer, liver disease and substance use
disorder can be devastating." The modelling study was based on data on
alcohol exposure from almost all countries of the world, both surveys
and sales figures, which were combined with the latest relative risk
estimates for cancer based on level of consumption.

"Alcohol causes cancer in numerous ways," explained Dr. Kevin Shield, Independent Scientist, Institute for Mental Health Policy Research,
and study co-author. "The main mechanism of how alcohol causes cancer
is through impairing DNA repair. Additional pathways include chronic
alcohol consumption resulting in liver cirrhosis, and alcohol leading
to a dysregulation of sex hormones, leading to breast cancer. Alcohol
also increases the risk of head and neck cancer for smokers as it
increases the absorption of carcinogens from tobacco." Dr. Rehm says
research into the link between light to moderate drinking and cancer is relatively new and that public policy does not yet reflect the degree of
cancer risk. He added, "As an epidemiologist, I would recommend higher
taxes to fully reflect the burden of disease from alcohol. Along with
limiting the physical availability and marketing of alcohol, price
controls are recognized as high-impact, cost-effective measures to
reduce alcohol-related harm." Governments can also consider requiring manufacturers to include information about health and safety risks
associated with alcohol consumption, including cancer risk, on alcoholic beverage labels.

These suggestions and many others can be found in CAMH's Alcohol
Policy Framework. Updated in September 2019, the document proposes evidence-informed measures to effectively address the health and social
harms associated with alcohol.

========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by
Centre_for_Addiction_and_Mental_Health. Note: Content may be edited for
style and length.


========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. Harriet Rumgay et al. Global burden of cancer in 2020 attributable
to
alcohol consumption: a population-based study. Lancet Oncology,
2021 DOI: 10.1016/S1470-2045(21)00279-5 ==========================================================================

Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/07/210714110410.htm

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