health

Alcohol remains a major preventable cause of cancer death

NEWS IN BRIEF — Posted Feb. 25, 2013

Print  |   Email  |   Respond  |   Reprints  |   Like Facebook  |   Share Twitter  |   Tweet Linkedin

Despite public health efforts to reduce binge drinking and alcohol abuse in the U.S., alcohol consumption continues to be a leading preventable cause of cancer death, according to a study published online Feb. 14 in the American Journal of Public Health.

Alcohol use accounted for 3.5% of cancer deaths in 2009, or about 19,500 people, the study concluded. Although higher levels of alcohol consumption led to a higher cancer risk, an average consumption of 1.5 drinks per day or fewer accounted for 30% of alcohol-attributable cancer deaths.

Fifteen percent of breast cancer deaths among U.S. women were attributable to alcohol consumption, the study said. Among men, cancers of the esophagus, mouth and throat were the most common causes of alcohol-attributable cancer mortality (link).

Researchers examined multiple sources of national data on alcohol consumption and cancer mortality, including the Alcohol Epidemiologic Data System and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System.

The study encourages medical and public health organizations to issue statements emphasizing that alcohol is a human carcinogen and recommending that people decrease or avoid alcohol consumption to reduce their cancer risk.

Back to top


ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISE HERE


Featured
Read story

Confronting bias against obese patients

Medical educators are starting to raise awareness about how weight-related stigma can impair patient-physician communication and the treatment of obesity. Read story


Read story

Goodbye

American Medical News is ceasing publication after 55 years of serving physicians by keeping them informed of their rapidly changing profession. Read story


Read story

Policing medical practice employees after work

Doctors can try to regulate staff actions outside the office, but they must watch what they try to stamp out and how they do it. Read story


Read story

Diabetes prevention: Set on a course for lifestyle change

The YMCA's evidence-based program is helping prediabetic patients eat right, get active and lose weight. Read story


Read story

Medicaid's muddled preventive care picture

The health system reform law promises no-cost coverage of a lengthy list of screenings and other prevention services, but some beneficiaries still might miss out. Read story


Read story

How to get tax breaks for your medical practice

Federal, state and local governments offer doctors incentives because practices are recognized as economic engines. But physicians must know how and where to find them. Read story


Read story

Advance pay ACOs: A down payment on Medicare's future

Accountable care organizations that pay doctors up-front bring practice improvements, but it's unclear yet if program actuaries will see a return on investment. Read story


Read story

Physician liability: Your team, your legal risk

When health care team members drop the ball, it's often doctors who end up in court. How can physicians improve such care and avoid risks? Read story

  • Stay informed
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • LinkedIn