More than half of Americans don’t know that alcohol increases their risk of cancer.
Despite the decline in cancer mortality rates, some cancers are inexplicably increasing in incidence. In particular, breast and colon cancers have been occurring at increasingly higher rates in adults under 50 over the past 60 years. Why?
Alcohol use is pointed out as one factor driving this trend. It is pointed out that alcohol consumption is not decreasing due to the public perception that moderate drinking is good for heart health. This is what the New York Times (NYT) reported based on the latest cancer progress report released by the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) on the 18th (local time).
The report estimates that 40% of all cancer cases are related to modifiable risk factors. Lifestyle changes such as reducing alcohol consumption, not smoking, maintaining a healthy diet and weight, exercising, avoiding ultraviolet rays, and minimizing exposure to pollutants are important.
The authors of the report called for awareness-raising public messaging campaigns and the addition of cancer warning labels on alcoholic beverages. The recommendations come amid a fundamental rethinking of the health benefits of moderate drinking, which for years was thought to protect against heart disease.
Last month, a large study that followed more than 135,000 British adults for more than a decade found that moderate and light drinking did not help reduce heart disease compared to occasional drinkers. Both moderate and light drinkers had a higher risk of dying from cancer than occasional drinkers, and the results were especially strong among older people on low incomes and those with existing health problems.
“Fifty-one percent of people don’t know that alcohol increases their cancer risk,” said Dr. Jane Figueredo, an epidemiologist at the Samuel Ocean Comprehensive Cancer Institute at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Boston, who helped write the AACR report. “There’s a myth out there that red wine has potential cardiovascular benefits, but there are many ways to keep your heart healthy,” she said. “These potential benefits don’t outweigh the cancer risks.”
The report noted that excessive drinking increases the risk of six types of malignancies, including squamous cell carcinoma of the esophagus, certain types of head and neck cancer, breast cancer, colon cancer, liver cancer, and stomach cancer. In 2019, about 5.4% of cancers diagnosed in the United States (1 in 20 cancer diagnoses) were attributed to alcohol consumption.
Public awareness of this is low. One study found that less than a third of women aged 18 to 25 knew that drinking alcohol increases the risk of breast cancer.
For adults in their 30s, the incidence of cancer increased significantly between 2010 and 2019. The cancers with the largest increases in 2019 were breast cancer, thyroid cancer, colon cancer, and rectal cancer, the report said. Early-onset colorectal cancer in people under 50 increased by 1.9% annually from 2011 to 2019.
Fortunately, new treatments are prolonging the survival of cancer patients. Mortality rates have decreased for women over 50 with breast cancer, and death rates have also decreased for older people with colon cancer.
However, as with stomach cancer and certain blood cancers, the rates of these cancers are increasing in young adults. As people with leukemia, melanoma, and kidney cancer live longer, the overall incidence of these diseases is also increasing.
Although the factors that increase the risk of early colorectal cancer are not well understood, many studies have shown that frequent and regular drinking in early and middle adulthood is associated with a higher risk of colon and rectal cancer in later life.
As alcohol consumption increases in middle age, the risk also worsens. Alcohol has a negative impact on the microbiome, the collection of bacteria, fungi, and viruses that live inside and outside our bodies, Dr. Figueredo points out. Drinking alters gut bacteria, which may play a role in the growth and spread of cancer.
Alcohol also increases a woman’s risk of breast cancer because it increases estrogen hormone levels, which can promote the development of the disease. Cutting down on alcohol consumption is one of the few ways women can reduce their risk of this disease.
Drinking alcohol during pregnancy has long been discouraged for a number of reasons. The AACR report adds a twist: A study found that drinking alcohol during pregnancy increases the risk of childhood leukemia in children.
The report can be found at the following link:
Source: kormedi.com
