Majority of Americans do not recognize alcohol’s role in cancer risk

Alcohol is a leading preventable cause of cancer, but public awareness of the connection remains strikingly low in the U.S., with just 40% of American adults recognizing alcohol as a cancer risk, according to a new study from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. 

The findings, published today in JAMA Oncology, reveal that 39% of American adults are not aware of the connection between cancer and alcohol and an additional 20% are uncertain whether they have heard or read about the link. Additionally, of the 5,937 respondents, just over 30% believe that cancer prevention is not possible. 

Despite the well-established association between alcohol and cancer, alcohol consumption has continued to rise in the U.S. Our findings suggest that many individuals are unaware of the significant benefit in reducing or eliminating alcohol intake. Simply put, the more a person drinks, the greater their risk of developing cancer." 

Sanjay Shete, Ph.D., corresponding author, deputy division head of Cancer Prevention and Population Sciences

Consuming alcohol has been linked to at least seven types of cancer, including colorectal, breast, liver, mouth, voice box, throat and esophageal. Each year, alcohol-related cancers claim the lives of more than 20,000 Americans, but nearly 70% of American adults admit to consuming alcoholic beverages. In January 2025, the U.S. Surgeon General issued an advisory about how alcohol increases cancer risk that also called for a new health warning label on alcoholic beverages. 

Researchers found that awareness of the link between alcohol and cancer was lowest among Black respondents (30%), those with some college education or less (35.2%), and those who did not believe cancer prevention was possible (31.5%). Alternatively, respondents who had experienced cancer had a higher likelihood of being aware of the connection. 

"Given we now know there is an increased risk of cancer, even at low levels of alcohol consumption, it is imperative to improve public awareness," Shete said. "We hope these findings encourage clinicians to speak with their patients directly and that the immediate revision of drinking guidelines becomes a national priority." 

This study was based on data from the 2022 Health Information National Trends Survey  and was measured through the question: "Have you ever heard or read that alcohol increases the risk of cancer?" Possible responses were: "yes," "no," or "don't know." 

Limitations may include the design of the survey, which did not allow researchers to establish a causal relationship between awareness and selected variables. 

This study was funded by the National Cancer Institute (P30CA016672) and the Betty B. Marcus Chair in Cancer Prevention.