Alcohol-related cancer deaths doubled from 1990 to 2021, study finds
New research is showing just how much alcohol has impacted cancer mortality rates in the past three decades.
In the analysis, released Thursday ahead of being presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology 2025 conference in Chicago, researchers found alcohol-associated cancer deaths in the United States doubled from 1990 to 2021, rising from 11,896 to 23,207.
The authors also found mortality rates were significantly higher in males and those above age 55. On a state level, the analysis found Washington, D.C., had the highest alcohol-related mortality rate across both sexes, while Utah had the lowest.
The analysis used data from the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) database, which provides incidence and mortality estimates for 35 cancer types. The GBD also highlights dozens of attributable risk factors, including alcohol use, allowing the authors to extract the total alcohol-associated cancer deaths for analysis.
"Despite growing awareness of alcohol as a risk factor for cancer development, alcohol continues to contribute significantly to cancer mortality," the authors wrote. "Our findings highlight the critical need for targeted prevention efforts and increased awareness to address the rising impact of alcohol consumption on cancer-related mortality,"
Alcohol consumption has long been a known risk factor for cancer.
In a September report, the American Association for Cancer Research found excessive levels of alcohol consumption can increase the risk for six different types of cancer, including breast, colorectal, liver, stomach, esophageal squamous cell carcinoma and certain types of head and neck cancers.
Earlier this year, former U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy called for cancer risk warnings to be included on alcoholic 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," Murthy said in a news release at the time.
Alcohol was already classified as a Group 1 carcinogen, a substance or exposure known to cause cancer in humans, by the International Agency for Research on Cancer due to sufficient evidence linking it to liver, breast, colorectal, esophagus, larynx, mouth, and throat cancers.
Social ties to alcohol can make quitting difficult, but experts say limiting consumption has benefits beyond limiting cancer risk.
"All organs can be affected by alcohol intake depending on dose and frequency," Dr. Angela Tatiana Alistar, medical director of GI Medical Oncology at Morristown Medical Center, Atlantic Health System, previously told CBS News. "There is vast scientific literature regarding the impact of alcohol consumption on the liver described as hepatitis (in the acute form), liver cirrhosis (chronic form) and possible liver cancer."
Drinking alcohol can also affect organs like the brain, disrupting the sleep-wake cycle.
"It can also affect cognition, coordination and emotional regulation," Alistar said. "Acute and chronic dependence and tolerance to alcohol is a high-risk factor for social functioning and mental health."
Reducing alcohol isn't the only way to decrease your risk of cancer, either. There are several other modifiable risk factors that researchers found are linked to more than 40% of all cancer fatalities, including smoking, excess body weight, physical inactivity and diet.
