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 With a newly released position paper, the American Society of
Clinical Oncology (ASCO) hopes to draw attention to the strong links
between drinking alcohol and risks for several types of cancer.
“People are not aware of this,” said Susan Gapstur, a vice-president
of the American Cancer Society who was not involved with the
position statement.
In a phone interview, Gapstur stressed that people living with
cancer remain at risk for other cancers so it’s important that they
realize alcohol’s role in cancer recurrence, too.
The call to action from ASCO follows a survey the group
commissioned, which found that 70 percent of Americans do not
recognize drinking alcohol as a risk factor for cancer. In fact,
alcohol consumption is known to increase the risk of several
cancers, including head and neck, esophageal, liver, colorectal and
female breast cancers.
Alcohol is classified as a carcinogen by the International Agency
for Cancer Research. Approximately 3.5 percent of all cancer deaths
in the U.S. - about 19,500 deaths - are alcohol related, according
to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The ASCO statement, published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology,
cautions that while the greatest risks are seen with heavy long-term
use, even low alcohol consumption (defined as less than one drink
per day) or moderate consumption (up to two drinks per day for men,
and one drink per day for women because they absorb and metabolize
it differently) can increase cancer risk.
Among women, light drinkers have a four percent increased risk of
breast cancer, while moderate drinkers have a 23 percent increased
risk of the disease. Heavy drinkers who consume more than eight
drinks a day have a 63 percent increased risk of female breast
cancer because alcohol increases levels of the female sex hormone
estrogen.
Dr. Noelle LoConte, a member of ASCO’s prevention committee who is
the lead author of the position paper, told Reuters Health that
“pink washing,” or exploiting the color pink to show a commitment to
finding a cure for breast cancer, leads people to buy pink bottles
of liquor during breast cancer awareness month. They think they’re
helping to fight breast cancer, but nothing could be farther from
the truth, she said.
Heavy drinkers of both genders increase their risk of head and neck
and oral cancers by more than 500 percent because tissues come into
direct contact with alcohol carcinogens.
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ASCO also notes that alcohol can worsen the impact of smoking. In
addition, alcohol abuse can complicate outcomes among patients with
cancer by contributing to prolonged recovery, longer
hospitalizations and increased surgical procedures.
All forms of alcohol, whether beer, wine, champagne or shots, cause
the same cancer risk.
“Alcohol consumption is one of the most difficult dietary factors to
accurately ascertain. Most people don’t know how much they’ve drunk
(in terms of ounces), or how much alcohol is in what they drink. And
most don’t accurately recall how often they drink,” Dr. Anne
McTiernan, a cancer prevention researcher at the Fred Hutchinson
Cancer Research Center in Seattle, told Reuters Health by email.
McTiernan is also on the advisory panel that oversees the work of
the World Cancer Research Fund.
In the U.S., 14 grams (0.6 ounces) of pure alcohol is found in 12
ounces of beer, 8 ounces of malt liquor, 5 ounces of red or white
wine and 1.5 ounces or a “shot” of 80-proof liquor.
LoConte told Reuters Health by phone she hopes oncologists can be a
“loud voice for policy change.”
Preventing cancer is as important as treating it, she said, adding,
“We hope that this paper makes a splash with other physicians so
they can get alcohol prevention on their radar, too.”
SOURCE: http://bit.ly/2zoksUK Journal of Clinical Oncology, online
November 7, 2017.
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