Alcohol raises breast cancer risk in women

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All alcohol raises breast cancer risk in women, experts say

 

By MARIA CHENG AP Medical Writer

Article Last Updated: 09/27/2007 07:07:35 AM MDT

http://www.denverpo st.com/healthcar e/ci_7014548

 

BARCELONA, Spain—All types of alcohol—wine, beer or liquor—add equally to

the risk of developing breast cancer in women, American researchers said

Thursday.

 

" This is a hugely underestimated risk factor, " said Dr. Patrick

Maisonneuve, head of epidemiology at the European Institute of Oncology in

Italy, who was not connected to the study.

 

" Women drinking wine because they think it is healthier than beer are

wrong, " he said. " It's about the amount of alcohol consumed, not the

type. "

 

Previous studies have shown a link between alcohol consumption and breast

cancer, but there have been conflicting messages about whether different

kinds of alcohol were more dangerous than others.

 

The researchers, led by Dr. Arthur Klatsky of the Kaiser Permanente

Medical Care Program in Oakland, Calif., revealed their findings at a

meeting of the European Cancer Organization in Barcelona.

 

Researchers analyzed the drinking habits of 70,033 women of various races

and asked them questions during health exams between 1978 and 1985. By

2004, 2,829 of these women had been diagnosed with breast cancer.

 

Klatsky and his colleagues looked at which types of alcohol the women

drank, as well as their total alcohol intake. They compared that to women

who had less than one drink a day.

 

Researchers found no difference in the risk of developing breast cancer

among women who drank wine, beer, or liquor. Compared with light

drinkers—those who had less than one drink a day—women who had one or two

drinks a day increased their risk of developing breast cancer by 10

percent. Women who had more than three drinks a day raised their risk by

30 percent.

 

" A 30 percent increased risk is not trivial, " Klatsky said. " It provides

more evidence for why heavy drinkers should quit or cut down. "

 

Some experts said that people might be confused by suggestions that

drinking red wine is healthy, since some studies have suggested that it

protects against heart disease.

 

" None of these mechanisms have anything to do with breast cancer, " Klatsky

said. Though it is not entirely clear how alcohol contributes to breast

cancer, some experts think it raises hormone levels in the blood to levels

that could potentially cause cancer.

 

Still, doctors said that other factors, such as genetics, obesity, and

age, were more important in raising the breast cancer risk than was

alcohol consumption.

 

More public education may be needed. " Alcohol has had a lot of good

publicity. People may not realize the risk they're taking when they have a

few drinks, " said Tim Key, of the Cancer Research UK Epidemiology Unit at

Oxford. Key was not involved in the study.

 

According to data published in the British Journal of Cancer in 2002, 4

percent of all breast cancers—about 44,000 cases a year—in the United

Kingdom are due to alcohol consumption.

 

Only a small proportion of women are thought to be heavy drinkers. But

experts now say there is enough evidence to blame alcohol for breast

cancer—and to start educating the public.

 

" Any alcohol consumption will raise your breast cancer risk, " Key said.

" Women don't have to abstain from alcohol entirely, but they need to be

aware of the risks they're taking when they have a few too many drinks. "

 

 

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