Researchers at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center analyzed Global Burden of Disease data spanning more than three decades and found that annual cancer deaths attributed to alcohol consumption increased substantially. The study, published in August in the Lancet Regional Health, documented a rise from 11,361 deaths in 1990 to 23,126 deaths in 2023.
The research links alcohol to elevated mortality risk across multiple cancer types, including breast, prostate, colon, rectal, stomach, pancreatic, and liver cancers, as well as head and neck cancers. The data showed that older men experienced the most pronounced effects, though increases were observed across most cancer types, age groups, and regions. Among males aged 55 and older, the alcohol-related cancer mortality rate rose nearly 24% during the 33-year period.
The study reinforces the long-standing classification of alcohol as a Group 1 carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, placing it alongside tobacco smoke and asbestos. Research indicates that even relatively low alcohol consumption elevates cancer risk, with increased risk linked to intake levels of 5 to 15 grams per day. Since the CDC defines a standard US drink as containing 14 grams of pure alcohol, consumption of just one drink per day could increase cancer risk according to the findings.
The National Cancer Institute reported that alcohol accounted for approximately 5% of the roughly 1.8 million cancer cases diagnosed in the US in 2019, and approximately 4% of the roughly 600,000 US cancer deaths that year. Among men, liver cancer showed the strongest association with alcohol consumption, followed by esophageal and colorectal cancers. For women aged 55 and older, breast cancer represented the leading alcohol-linked cancer death, followed by liver and colorectal cancers.
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