DNA damage caused by alcohol consumption through increased production of harmful chemicals
New Delhi:
According to a study published in The Lancet Oncology journal, alcohol consumption was associated with 62,100 or five per cent of newly diagnosed cancer cases in India last year, indicating that alcohol use is on the rise in the country.
Globally, researchers found that 740,000 or more than 4 percent of new cancer cases in 2020 could be attributed to drinking.
The study estimated that men accounted for 77 percent (568,700 cases) of alcohol-associated cancer cases compared to women, which accounted for 23 percent of cases (172,600).
Most cases of cancer of the esophagus, liver and breast have been reported.
Based on data from previous years, it shows that in 2020, there were over 6.3 million cases of mouth, pharynx, voice box (larynx), esophagus, colon, rectum, liver and breast cancer.
These cancers have well-established causal relationships for alcohol consumption, and estimates of a direct association with alcohol in the new study are the first of their kind for 2020.
“Trends suggest that although per capita alcohol consumption has decreased in many European countries, alcohol use is increasing in Asian countries such as China and India, and in sub-Saharan Africa,” said Harriet Rumge of the International Agency for Research on Alcoholism. Research on Cancer (IARC), France.
“In addition, there is evidence that the COVID-19 pandemic has increased drinking rates in some countries,” Ms Rumge said.
The researchers called for greater public awareness of the link between alcohol and cancer and increased government intervention to reduce its consumption in the most affected areas.
The study highlights the contribution of relatively low levels of drinking to cancer rates, which is concerning, but also suggests that small changes in public drinking behavior may positively affect cancer rates in the future. Huh.
According to the researchers, alcohol consumption damages DNA through increased production of harmful chemicals in the body, and affects hormone production, which can contribute to the development of cancer.
He added that alcohol can also worsen the cancer-causing effects of other substances such as tobacco.
In the new study, researchers established per-capita alcohol intake levels for 2010, to allow for the amount of time it took for alcohol consumption to potentially affect cancer development.
They then combined them with new cancer cases in 2020 to estimate the number of alcohol-associated cancers in each country.
Moderate drinking was classified as having two alcoholic drinks, risky drinking as having two to six alcoholic drinks per day, and heavy drinking as having more than six alcoholic drinks per day.
Globally, 4 percent (741,300) of all new cancer cases in 2020 were linked to alcohol consumption, the researchers said.
The study found that risky drinking and heavy drinking accounted for the largest proportion of cancer cases at 39 percent (291,800 cases) and 47 percent (346,400 cases), respectively.
However, moderate drinking was also found to be problematic, with an estimate that this level of drinking accounted for 14 percent (103,100 cases) of total alcohol-caused cases.
East Asia and the regions of Central and Eastern Europe had the highest proportion of cancer cases that could be linked to alcohol at 6 percent, the lowest proportion found in North Africa and Western Asia, both at less than 1 percent.
At the country level, the proportion of alcohol-associated cancer cases was estimated to be highest in Mongolia (10 percent) and lowest in Kuwait (estimated 0 percent).
An estimated 5 per cent (62,100) cancer cases in India were linked to alcohol, compared to 6 per cent (282,300) in China, 4 per cent (21,500 cases) in Germany and 5 per cent (20,000 cases) in France.
An estimated 4 per cent of cancer cases in the UK were linked to alcohol (16,800), in the US 3 per cent (52,700) and in Brazil 4 per cent (20,500 cases).
“We urgently need to raise awareness among policymakers and the general public about the association between alcohol consumption and cancer risk,” said Ms Rumge.
The researchers noted that public health strategies, such as reducing the availability of alcohol, labeling alcohol products with health warnings, and marketing restrictions can reduce rates of alcohol-borne cancers.
He added that tax and pricing policies that have led to reduced alcohol consumption in Europe, including increased excise duties and minimum unit prices, could be implemented in other world regions as well.
(Except for the title, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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