Alcohol consumption is a major contributor to cancer across Europe, according to a new report from the World Health Organization’s (WHO) International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). Experts emphasize that stronger government measures to reduce drinking could prevent tens of thousands of cancer cases and deaths each year.
In the European Union — the region with the world’s highest alcohol consumption — more than 111,000 new cancer cases in 2020 were linked to alcohol use. Globally, alcohol was responsible for an estimated 741,000 cancer cases, with men accounting for nearly 70% of them.
The economic impact is also severe. WHO data show that premature deaths from alcohol-related cancers cost €4.58 billion in 2018.
“The WHO European Region, and especially EU countries, are paying too high a price for alcohol in preventable cancers, family disruptions, and billions in taxpayer costs,” said Dr. Gundo Weiler, head of prevention and health promotion at WHO Europe. “Some call alcohol a ‘cultural heritage,’ but disease, death, and disability should not be normalized as part of European culture.”
Alcohol and Cancer Risk
Alcohol was first classified as a carcinogen in 1988. It increases the risk of at least seven types of cancer, including those of the mouth, pharynx, larynx, esophagus, liver, colorectum, and breast.
Scientists say alcohol promotes cancer through several biological mechanisms — by altering hormone levels, damaging DNA through oxidative stress, disrupting the gut microbiome, and producing acetaldehyde, a toxic metabolite of ethanol.
Reducing or stopping alcohol consumption lowers the risk of developing these cancers. Most alcohol-related cancers stem from “risky” (two to six drinks per day) or “heavy” (more than six drinks per day) drinking, but even “moderate” consumption — fewer than two drinks daily — caused over 100,000 new cancer cases worldwide in 2020.
Prevention and Policy Measures
For the first time, IARC has evaluated the potential benefits of preventing alcohol-related cancers. The agency’s analysis confirmed that comprehensive alcohol policies effectively reduce drinking and, consequently, cancer risk.
IARC recommends implementing higher taxes and minimum prices on alcohol, increasing the legal drinking age, limiting the density and operating hours of alcohol retailers, banning advertising, and expanding government control over sales.
Evidence suggests that these policies can make a measurable difference. One 2021 study estimated that doubling alcohol excise taxes could have prevented 6% of new alcohol-related cancers and deaths in 2019 across WHO’s European region, which includes Europe and Central Asia.
“Raising awareness about the cancer risks of alcohol and the fact that no level of drinking is safe is critical,” said Dr. Béatrice Lauby-Secretan, deputy head of IARC’s evidence synthesis and classification branch. “Everyone has a role to play in changing the norms and values that shape alcohol consumption.”
