A NEW website has been launched focusing on the connection between alcohol consumption and cancer.
The Association of European Cancer Leagues and the European Alcohol Policy Alliance have come together to launch https://www.alcoholandcancer.eu/ to highlight the major cancer risks posed by alcohol consumption.
Experts have known since 1987 that alcohol can cause cancer, but the connection between the two is often unknown or ignored. Research in Europe has shown that 1 in 10 Europeans do not know about the connection and that 1 in 5 do not believe that there is a connection between cancer and alcohol.
“One in three people in Europe are likely to get cancer in their lifetime. One third of all cancers are preventable by living a healthy lifestyle. Moderate or no alcohol consumption is one of the best ways to protect our well being,” said Irish MEP Nessa Childers.
“It is an unfortunate reality that alcohol is a drug that causes cancer, in fact alcohol causes approximately one in every ten cancers in the EU. Consumers of alcohol have a basic right to be informed of this unfortunate reality, just as they must be informed, by law, of the side effects of all the other drugs that are legally available to purchase. Consumers of alcohol can substantially lower their risk of developing cancer by drinking less, and drinking less often,” said Dr Nick Sheron, Royal College of Physicians.
Click here for Alcohol Action Ireland’s facts on alcohol and cancer.
