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U.S. Surgeon General Issues New Advisory on Link Between Alcohol and Cancer Risk


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https://www.hhs.gov/about/news/2025/01/03/us-surgeon-general-issues-new-advisory-link-alcohol-cancer-risk.html

Get ready for warning labels like cigarettes, dip, cigars, etc.

Alcohol Consumption is the Third Leading Preventable Cause of Cancer in the United States

Washington, D.C. – Today, United States Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy released a new Surgeon General’s Advisory on Alcohol and Cancer Risk, outlining the direct link between alcohol consumption and increased cancer risk. Alcohol consumption is the third leading preventable cause of cancer in the United States, after tobacco and obesity, increasing risk for at least seven types of cancer. While scientific evidence for this connection has been growing over the past four decades, less than half of Americans recognize it as a risk factor for cancer.

The Surgeon General’s Advisory includes a series of recommendations to increase awareness to help minimize alcohol-related cancer cases and deaths, including updating the existing Surgeon General’s health warning label on alcohol-containing beverages.

“Alcohol is a well-established, preventable cause of cancer responsible for about 100,000 cases of cancer and 20,000 cancer deaths annually in the United States – greater than the 13,500 alcohol-associated traffic crash fatalities per year in the U.S. – yet the majority of Americans are unaware of this risk,” said U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy. “This Advisory lays out steps we can all take to increase awareness of alcohol’s cancer risk and minimize harm.”

The direct link between alcohol consumption and cancer risk is well-established for at least seven types of cancer including cancers of the breast, colorectum, esophagus, liver, mouth (oral cavity), throat (pharynx), and voice box (larynx), regardless of the type of alcohol (e.g., beer, wine, and spirits) that is consumed. For breast cancer specifically, 16.4% of total breast cancer cases are attributable to alcohol consumption.

In the U.S., there are about 100,000 alcohol-related cancer cases and about 20,000 alcohol-related cancer deaths annually. Cancer risk increases as alcohol consumption increases. For certain cancers, like breast, mouth, and throat cancers, evidence shows that the risk of developing cancer may start to increase around one or fewer drinks per day. An individual's risk of developing cancer due to alcohol consumption is determined by a complex interaction of biological, environmental, social, and economic factors.

In addition to calling for an update on the Surgeon General’s health warning label on alcohol-containing beverages to now include cancer risk, the Advisory makes further recommendations. It calls for a reassessment of the guideline limits for alcohol consumption to account for cancer risk, and it advises individuals to be aware of the relationship between alcohol consumption and increased cancer risk when considering whether or how much to drink. Additionally, public health professionals and community groups should highlight alcohol consumption as a leading modifiable cancer risk factor and strengthen and expand education efforts to increase general awareness, and health care providers should inform patients in clinical settings about this link and promote the use of alcohol screening and treatment referrals as needed.

Surgeon General’s Advisories are public statements that call the American people’s attention to a critical public health issue. Advisories are reserved for significant public health challenges that require the nation’s immediate awareness and action. As the Nation’s Doctor, the 21st Surgeon General of the United States, Dr. Murthy, has issued Surgeon General’s Advisories on The Mental Health and Well-Being of Parents, Firearm Violence, Loneliness and Isolation, Social Media and Youth Mental Health, Youth Mental Health,  Health Worker Well-Being, and a Framework on Workplace Well-Being.

You can read the full Advisory here. For more information about the Office of the Surgeon General, please visit www.surgeongeneral.gov/priorities.

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I’m not advocating for a ban or anything, but treatment similar to tobacco needs to be discussed.  Heavy drinkers pay the same health insurance rate as teetotalers.  Same for Medicare.  Perhaps insurance rates need to be tied to drinking rates.

 

We get a Social Security saving because drinkers likely (sry for this) die sooner.  Those people are less of a drag on the SS trust fund.

Edited by Parliament
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I’m not advocating for a ban or anything, but treatment similar to tobacco needs to be discussed.  Heavy drinkers pay the same health insurance rate as teetotalers.  Same for Medicare.  Perhaps insurance rates need to be tied to drinking rates.
 
We get a Social Security saving because drinkers likely (sry for this) die sooner.  Those people are less of a drag on the SS trust fund.
 
Going out on a limb here, but I'm not entirely sure that people are honest when questioned about how much alcohol they consume.

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20 minutes ago, Parliament said:

I’m not advocating for a ban or anything, but treatment similar to tobacco needs to be discussed.  Heavy drinkers pay the same health insurance rate as teetotalers.  Same for Medicare.  Perhaps insurance rates need to be tied to drinking rates.

 

Shit man, I was going to post something similar … as a joke. 

Maybe we need to start metering sugar intake too so the insurance companies can truly begin to maximize profits

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44 minutes ago, Parliament said:

I’m not advocating for a ban or anything, but treatment similar to tobacco needs to be discussed.  Heavy drinkers pay the same health insurance rate as teetotalers.  Same for Medicare.  Perhaps insurance rates need to be tied to drinking rates.

 

We get a Social Security saving because drinkers likely (sry for this) die sooner.  Those people are less of a drag on the SS trust fund.

FUCK THAT 

Go after the fat smokers and leave me and my sweet precious alcohol alone 

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53 minutes ago, Jerry Callo said:

 Going out on a limb here, but I'm not entirely sure that people are honest when questioned about how much alcohol they consume.

Of course we all fudge the alcohol consumption question.  It's like going to confession back in my Catholic youth days.

"Forgive me Father, for it's been six months since my last confession.  Um . . . I cheated on a test . . . I, um . . . I used the Lord's name in vain . . . I was disrespectful to my parents.  . . . That's about it, Father.  [Leaves out copious amounts of sinful masturbation.]"

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While he's not entirely wrong, there is more to this and I think they're missing something.  The types of cancers they're linking it to are colon, breast, liver, etc.  Since about the 1980's, the cases of those are up considerably for people under 50.  However, that demographic is drinking significantly less than prior generations.  (See below.)  Booze might be a component but it's only a piece and I think they're missing something.  I'd go out on a limb and say people who abuse booze have other bad habits as well.

ARCR_42_1_Article-02-Keyes_Figure-01.jpg

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1 hour ago, Aqua Buddha said:

While he's not entirely wrong, there is more to this and I think they're missing something.  The types of cancers they're linking it to are colon, breast, liver, etc.  Since about the 1980's, the cases of those are up considerably for people under 50.  However, that demographic is drinking significantly less than prior generations.  (See below.)  Booze might be a component but it's only a piece and I think they're missing something.  I'd go out on a limb and say people who abuse booze have other bad habits as well.

ARCR_42_1_Article-02-Keyes_Figure-01.jpg

Or it could be the growing use of forever chemicals and presence of micro plastics. But it's a much easier sell to say "it's those damn alkies/fatties/etc" and not worry about the actual why

Edited by Captainant
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53 minutes ago, Deej said:

The gameday thread meltdowns would be much less entertaining if everyone was high instead of drunk.

We should have 2 GD threads -

Drunk, angry and ranting at every snap
Chill, high af and can barely follow along

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25 minutes ago, Aqua Buddha said:

While he's not entirely wrong, there is more to this and I think they're missing something.  The types of cancers they're linking it to are colon, breast, liver, etc.  Since about the 1980's, the cases of those are up considerably for people under 50.  However, that demographic is drinking significantly less than prior generations.  (See below.)  Booze might be a component but it's only a piece and I think they're missing something.  I'd go out on a limb and say people who abuse booze have other bad habits as well.

ARCR_42_1_Article-02-Keyes_Figure-01.jpg

Alcohol is an irritant and it facilitates the transfer of chemicals through cells. So you have a 10X higher chance of head and neck cancer if you smoke and drink at the same time. 
 

Then we all know what alcohol does to the liver so that one is well known.

 

The digestive tract stuff is probably related to it being an irritant and probably increased acid from the stomach. It wouldn’t surprise me in those cases if there is a direct correlation between the amount and frequency of alcohol and risk. So casual 1-2 drinks per week would have very low risk for digestive tract cancers.

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5 minutes ago, BabaYaga said:

73.85?

giphy.gif?cid=6c09b952wst9onh02i7708zxkl

My drinking level is so low these days and hangovers are so bad, I couldn't imagine the hangover with 10 drinks. Much less if I followed that up with a day of 10 more.

A friend of a friend was mentioning how he normally went through a case of beer per night. That can't be good for you.

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1 hour ago, South Austin said:

Of course we all fudge the alcohol consumption question.  It's like going to confession back in my Catholic youth days.

"Forgive me Father, for it's been six months since my last confession.  Um . . . I cheated on a test . . . I, um . . . I used the Lord's name in vain . . . I was disrespectful to my parents.  . . . That's about it, Father.  [Leaves out copious amounts of sinful masturbation.]"

[blushing]
 

IMG_6554.jpeg

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