Alcohol and liver cancer

Drinking alcohol causes liver cancer. Your risk of developing liver cancer starts even at low levels of drinking and the risk increases the more you drink, especially if you do so on a regular basis.^1,2

Not everyone who drinks alcohol will get liver cancer, but the risk starts to increase even at low levels of drinking. So, the less you drink, the more you reduce your risk.

Heavy, long-term alcohol consumption is a common cause of cirrhosis of the liver, which happens when scar tissue builds up in the liver stopping it from working properly.³ People with cirrhosis are more likely to progress to liver cancer.

Liver cancer and alcohol

The liver is a resilient organ, which can recover after damage. However, if the liver is seriously challenged by long-term alcohol consumption, cirrhosis is likely to follow and with that, increased risk of liver cancer.⁴

Even low levels of alcohol may be harmful because the liver can produce toxic substances from alcohol even before cirrhosis has developed, which may contribute to the development of liver cancer.⁵

One in 14 cases (7%) of liver cancer in the UK are caused by drinking alcohol.⁶

That means that in the UK at least 400 cases of liver cancer each year are caused by alcohol - most of them in men.

What are the benefits of drinking less?

Other causes of liver cancer 

Tobacco causes many types of cancer including 20% of all cases of liver cancer in the UK.⁷ Importantly, if you drink heavily as well as smoke, your risk of getting liver cancer is higher than with either drinking or smoking alone.

Chronic hepatitis caused by hepatitis virus B or C also causes liver cancer. If you drink heavily and have hepatitis B or C infection, your risk of getting liver cancer is higher than with either drinking or viral infection alone.

Liver cancer symptoms 

Early diagnosis is associated with an improved chance of survival. So if you have any of the following symptoms, they must not be ignored. Even if it turns out not to be cancer, these symptoms are always worth getting checked out. Symptoms of liver cancer include:⁸

• Losing a noticeable amount of weight unexpectedly

• Having little or no appetite, and feeling full after even small meals

• Nausea and vomiting for more than a couple of days

• Stomach pain or swelling for more than a couple of days

• A lump in the right side of your abdomen

• Itching

• Jaundice (yellowing of your skin and the whites of your eyes)

• Fatigue for more than a few days with no explanation

The NHS recommends getting advice from 111 if:⁹

• Your skin or the whites of your eyes turn yellow

• You're being sick (vomiting) for more than two days

• You have symptoms that you are worried about, but are not sure where to get help

How to reduce your drinking

Liver cancer prevention 

The less alcohol you drink, the lower your risk of getting liver cancer.

Drinking less helps to reduce the risk of harm from alcohol.¹⁰ However, for alcohol related cancers, your risk of cancer starts with any amount of alcohol consumption, however modest, and increases the more you drink on a regular basis.

If you have been diagnosed with cirrhosis of the liver you must stop drinking alcohol completely and permanently, otherwise your risk of getting liver cancer as well as liver failure will continue to increase. If you are a heavy drinker, it’s important to get advice from your GP or local alcohol support service on how to stop drinking safely – stopping ‘cold turkey’ can be dangerous if you are alcohol dependent.

In summary - ways to reduce your risk of liver cancer include:

• Not drinking at all, or (if you haven’t already got liver cirrhosis) drinking at low levels and well below 14 units a week

• Not smoking

• Getting viral hepatitis infection diagnosed and treated without delay

• Maintaining a healthy weight - avoiding obesity

For people who are in good health, to reduce your risk of alcohol related health harms, men and women should follow the UK Chief Medical Officers' (CMOs) low risk drinking guidelines. To keep health risks from alcohol to a low level, the CMOs advise everyone not to drink more than 14 units a week on a regular basis. If you regularly drink as much as 14 units per week, it's advisable to spread your drinking evenly over three or more days and if you wish to cut down the amount you drink, a good way to help achieve this is to have several drink-free days a week.

Tools to reduce your drinking

Drinkchat

Drinkchat is a free online service for anyone who is looking for information or advice about their own, or someone else’s drinking. Trained advisors are on hand to give you confidential advice, and you don’t even have to make a phone call.

Alcohol support services