Yahoo Lifestyle 'I'm an Oncologist—This Is the One Thing I Want Everyone to Take Away From the Surgeon General's Alcohol Warning'
The U.S. surgeon general is calling for cancer warning labels on alcohol.
In early January 2025, the Department of Health and Human Services released an advisory warning that drinking alcohol is linked to increased risks of breast cancer, colorectal cancer, mouth cancer, throat cancer, esophageal cancer, liver cancer and larygneal cancer.
Dr. Vivek Murthy, MD, MBA, the surgeon general under outgoing President Joe Biden, advised the U.S. to follow suit with Ireland and South Korea in placing health advisory labels on booze.
"Many people out there assume that as long as they’re drinking at the limits or below the limits of current guidelines of one a day for women and two for men, that there is no risk to their health or well-being," Dr. Murthy told The New York Times. "The data does not bear that out for cancer risk."
It remains to be seen if the warning label recommendation will take effect due to the change in administrations later this month when President Donald Trump takes office.
How do oncologists feel about the warnings on alcohol for consumers and patients? As it turns out, some of their responses were as mixed as well drinks at your favorite pub.
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What Oncologists Want You to Know About the Surgeon General's Alcohol Warning
"I do agree that alcohol guidelines should be updated to include cancer risks," Dr. Nilesh L. Vora, MD, board-certified hematologist and medical oncologist and medical director of the MemorialCare Todd Cancer Institute at Long Beach Medical Center, told Parade. "We need to educate others about the fact that alcohol use can cause cancer, in the same way we've educated others about the risk of tobacco and cancer."
Two doctors we spoke with previously concurred with Dr. Vora.
"Studies show that the majority of Americans are not aware of the association of alcohol consumption and cancer. Clearly, more education is needed," Dr. Jamie L. Koprivnikar, MD, board-certified medical oncologist, internist and hematologist at Hackensack Meridian Medical Center previously told Parade. "Labels will help, but it is also incumbent upon healthcare providers to have an open and honest dialogue regarding alcohol consumption with their patients."
"Even though alcohol use is common societally, drinking alcohol increases exposure to carcinogens associated with breast cancer," Dr. Toma Omofoye, MD, breast imaging radiologist at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, previously told us, adding, "Research so far has not identified any kinds of alcohol as being safer than others."
Related: The Super Common Habit That's Supersizing Your Cancer Risk, According to Oncologists
What Are Other Health Risks of Drinking Alcohol?
In addition to increasing your risk of cancers, drinking can also wreak havoc on your heart and brain health.
Not only can excessive alcohol use cause heart disease, but binge drinking, even just once in a while, can cause other immediate heart health problems.
"Alcohol disrupts the balance of the autonomic nervous system, activating the sympathetic response (adrenaline release), which can irritate the heart muscle and interfere with electrical signaling," explains Dr. Sam Setareh, MD, MS, FACC, the director of clinical cardiology at Beverly Hills Cardiovascular, previously told Parade. "This autonomic imbalance continues into the recovery phase after drinking, with a heightened risk for arrhythmias like AFib and even ventricular tachycardia, as observed in some participants."
Excessive boozing has also been linked with an increased risk of developing Alzheimer's disease and dementia.
Should You Quit Drinking Completely to Prevent Cancer?
Not every oncologist thinks you need to be a teetotaler to be safe from cancer, but they generally agree it can't hurt.
However, they all agree that drinking to excess will absolutely raise your risk.
"It is well established that excessive consumption of alcohol is associated with multiple diseases and cancers including cardiovascular disease, liver disease and several cancers (liver, head and neck, breast, esophagus and colorectal in particular)," Dr. Anton Bilchik, MD, PhD., surgical oncologist, chief of medicine and director of the gastrointestinal and hepatobiliary program at Providence Saint John's Cancer Institute in Santa Monica, Calif., says. "Less is known about the negative effect of occasional alcohol use. In fact, some studies suggest that a glass of red wine daily may have cardioprotective effects and the Mediterranean diet which has been well studied as an anti-inflammatory diet includes an occasional glass of red wine."
Related: Are Certain Types of Alcohol Better for Your Liver Than Others? Here’s What Doctors Say
"I think it is important, therefore, to understand the differences between percentage differences and absolute differences," Dr. Bilchik explained. "For example, a 10% increase in cancer risk relates to one in 100 individuals being impacted. Furthermore, the potential beneficial effect of occasional alcohol uses such as celebrating a family occasion, stress reduction or the social benefit is not addressed. By far, the majority of patients I see with cancer have no clear etiology. Many of them don't drink at all. I am therefore not ready to quote the surgeon general's report to my patients to stop all consumption of alcohol and that any amount has negative consequences."
Still, if you want to hedge your bets, you may want to stick with mocktails.
"Risks of moderate alcohol consumption may include liver disease, heart disease, mental health conditions, and digestive problems," Dr. Vora notes. This means even your occasional glass of wine with dinner may not be helping your health. If you're looking for help quitting drinking, you may want to try this expert-recommended treatment.
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