Alcohol use is widespread in Australia and has had a dominant role in defining Australian culture for more than 200 years. However, it is also an important cause of illness, injury and death, whether resulting from short-term episodes of intoxication or from long-term, chronic use.
Addressing the health and social damage resulting from risky drinking is one of the three key priority areas identified by the Australian National Preventative Health Taskforce.
Levels of harm from alcohol use are increasing, and a range of policy measures have been proposed to address the current drinking “culture” in Australia.
In this article, we provide a brief overview of the evidence concerning alcohol use and cancer, and outline the current Cancer Council Australia (CCA) recommendations on alcohol consumption. The consensus process for developing this position statement is described in Box 1, and a summary of the key evidence-based points is provided in Box 2. > > > > Read More
