• A new UN study has found that alcoholic drinks, especially beer and spirits, may raise the risk of pancreatic cancer.

• The research, led by the World Health Organisation’s International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), pooled data from nearly 2.5 million people across Asia, Australia, Europe, and North America.

• It revealed a “modest but significant” association between alcohol consumption and the risk of developing pancreatic cancer, regardless of sex or smoking status.

• Alcohol consumption is a known carcinogen, but until now, the evidence linking it specifically to pancreatic cancer has been considered inconclusive.

• The pancreas is a vital organ that produces enzymes for digestion and hormones that regulate blood sugar. 

• Pancreatic cancer is among the most lethal cancers, largely due to late diagnosis.

• Pancreatic cancer is the twelfth most common cancer globally, but it accounts for 5 per cent of cancer-related deaths due to its high fatality rate.

• In 2022, incidence and mortality rates were up to five times higher in Europe, North America, Australia and New Zealand, and Eastern Asia than in other regions.

Alcohol is an established carcinogen

• Alcohol and alcoholic beverages contain ethanol, which is a psychoactive and toxic substance with dependence-producing properties.

• Worldwide, 2.6 million deaths were attributable to alcohol consumption in 2019, of which 2 million were among men and 0.6 million among women. 

• The highest levels of alcohol-related deaths per 100,000 persons are observed in the WHO European and African Regions with 52.9 deaths and 52.2 deaths per 100,000 people, respectively.

• Alcohol as an intoxicant affects a wide range of structures and processes in the central nervous system and increases the risk for intentional and unintentional injuries and adverse social consequences. Alcohol has considerable toxic effects on the digestive and cardiovascular systems.

• Alcohol is an established carcinogen and alcohol consumption increases the risk of several cancers, including breast, liver, head and neck, oesophageal and colorectal cancers. 

• In 2019, about 4.4 per cent of cancers diagnosed globally and 401,000 cancer deaths were attributed to alcohol consumption.

Key points of the study:

• The IARC study found that each additional 10 grams of alcohol consumed per day was associated with a 3 per cent increase in pancreatic cancer risk.

• For women consuming 15 to 30 grams of alcohol daily — about one to two drinks — the risk rose by 12 per cent compared to light drinkers. 

• Among men, those who drank 30 to 60 grams daily faced a 15 per cent increased risk, while men drinking more than 60 grams daily saw a 36 per cent higher risk.

• Alcohol is often consumed in combination with tobacco, which has led to questions about whether smoking might confound the relationship.

• However, the analysis showed that the association between alcohol and pancreatic cancer risk holds even for non-smokers, indicating that alcohol itself is an independent risk factor.

• Further research is needed to better understand the impact of lifetime alcohol consumption, including patterns such as binge drinking and early-life exposure.

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