(By Dr. Joseph D. Lim and Dr. Kenneth Lester Lim, BS-MMG, DDM, MSc-OI)
THE US Surgeon General has issued an advisory warning that alcohol use is a leading preventable cause of cancer.
The US Surgeon General advisory describes the scientific evidence for the causal link between alcohol consumption and increased cancer risk.
In the United States, it says, alcoholic drinks contribute to nearly 100,000 cancer cases and about 20,000 cancer deaths each year.
Alcohol use is very common in America: in 2019-2020, 72 percent of US adults reported they consumed one or more drinks per week, but less than half of U.S. adults are aware of the relationship between alcohol consumption and cancer risk.
The direct link between alcohol use and cancer was first established in the late 1980s, the Advisory observes, adding that evidence for this link has strengthened over time.
According to the U.S. Surgeon General 2025 Advisory, “the body of scientific evidence demonstrates a causal relationship between alcohol use and increased risk for at least seven different types of cancer, including breast (in women), colorectum, esophagus, liver – and mouth (oral cavity), throat (pharynx), and voice box (larynx).
“The more alcohol consumed, the greater the risk of cancer,” the Advisory states.
For certain cancers, like mouth, throat and breast cancers, evidence shows that this risk may start to increase around one or fewer drinks per day.
After tobacco and obesity, alcohol consumption is the third leading preventable cause of cancer in the United States,. In 2019, an estimated 96,730 cancer cases were related to alcohol consumption, including 42,400 in men and 54,330 in women.
“This translates to nearly 1 million preventable cancer cases over 10 years in the US,” the US Surgeon General says.
The largest burden of alcohol-related cancer in the US is for breast cancer in women with an estimated 44,180 cases in 2019, representing 16.4 percent of the approximately 270,000 total breast cancer cases for women.
Globally, 741,300 cancer cases were related to alcohol consumption in 2020; 185,100 of those cases were related to consumption of approximately two drinks daily or fewer.
In the US, there are about 20,000 alcohol-related cancer deaths annually. This is greater than the number of alcohol-associated traffic crash fatalities (about 13,500 annually) in the US.
“Alcohol-related cancer deaths shorten the lives of those who die by an average of 15 years,” the US Surgeon General says.
“Annually, a total of about 305,000 years of potential life are lost due to alcohol-related cancer deaths. Breast cancer accounts for the majority of alcohol-related cancer deaths in women, whereas liver cancer together with colorectal cancer account for the majority of alcohol-related cancer deaths in men.
About 83 percent of the estimated 20,000 US alcohol-related cancer deaths per year occur at levels above the 2020-2025 US Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommended limits of two drinks daily for men and one drink daily for women.
The remaining 17 percent of the estimated 20,000 US alcohol-related cancer deaths per year occur at levels within those recommended limits.
“Despite clear evidence demonstrating the effect of alcohol consumption on cancer risk, there is a large gap in public understanding of the risk,” the US Surgeon General Advisory says.
In a 2019 survey, 45 percent of Americans recognized alcohol use as a risk factor for cancer compared to 91 percent of Americans who recognized the risk of radiation exposure, 89 percent for tobacco use, 81 percent for asbestos exposure, and 53 percent for obesity.
“Public awareness of alcohol consumption as a cancer risk factor has not substantially improved over nearly two decades, even as evidence documenting the link between alcohol consumption and cancer risk has increased,” the Advisory says.
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Dr. Joseph D. Lim, Ed. D., is the former Associate Dean of the College of Dentistry, University of the East; former Dean, College of Dentistry, National University; Past President and Honorary Fellow of the Asian Oral Implant Academy; Honorary Fellow of the Japan College of Oral Implantologists; Honorary Life Member of the Thai Association of Dental Implantology; and Founding Chairman of the Philippine College of Oral Implantologists. For questions on dental health, e-mail jdlim2008@gmail.com or text 0917-8591515.
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Dr. Kenneth Lester Lim, BS-MMG, DDM, MSc-OI, graduated Doctor of Dental Medicine, University of the Philippines, College of Dentistry, Manila, 2011; Bachelor of Science in Marketing Management, De la Salle University, Manila, 2002; and Master of Science (MSc.) in Oral Implantology, Goethe University, Frankfurt, Germany, 2019. He is an Associate Professor; Fellow, International Congress of Oral Implantologists; and Fellow, Philippine College of Oral Implantologists. For questions on dental health, e-mail limdentalcenter@gmail.com/PN
