News

Source - Herald 08/04/2011

One in 10 cancers in men and one in 33 in women across western Europe are caused by alcohol, researchers have claimed.

At least 13,000 cases of cancer a year in the UK are the result of alcohol, according to the study. Even small amounts raise the risk of developing the disease.

NHS guidelines state that men should drink no more than three to four units a day while women should not go above two to three units a day. But research, published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ), found cancer risks at even lower levels.

Alcohol creates a chemical when it is broken down by the body that can damage DNA and increase the risk of cancer.

The cancer burden it causes was assessed as part of the European Prospective Investigation of Cancer (Epic), one of the largest-ever studies into links between diet and the illness. It involved more than 360,000 men and women aged 35 to 70.

Alcohol intake at recruitment stage in the 1990s was noted, and the follow-up examined how many developed cancer.

Other factors – such as family history, obesity and smoking – were taken into account to give a picture of the toll taken by drinking above guidelines of 24g of alcohol a day for men and 12g a day for women.

Researchers found that 3% of cancers in men were linked to drinking less than 24g of alcohol a day and more than 18% were down to drinking more than 24g a day. In women, 1% of cancers were down to drinking less than 12g of alcohol a day while 4% were due to drinking more than 12g of alcohol daily. Some 17% of bowel cancers in men were linked to drinking, as were 5% of breast cancers in women.

The authors, from universities and hospitals across Europe, said: “Our data shows that many cancer cases could have been avoided if alcohol consumption was limited to two drinks a day for men and one alcoholic drink a day for women.”

“More cancer cases would be prevented if people reduced their alcohol intake to below guidelines or stopped drinking alcohol at all.”

Alcohol consumption in Scotland is 25% higher than the rest of the UK with residents consuming 23 units a week.

Dr Evelyn Gillan, chief executive of Alcohol Focus Scotland, said: “So many cancers could be avoided if people reduced their alcohol intake.”

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