Wilson LF, et al. - In Australia, researchers determined the proportion of cancers that could potentially be prevented over a 25-year period as a result of reducing alcohol consumption. They approximated future cancer incidence under two hypothetical intervention scenarios and two latency periods (20 and 30 years). They found that up to 4% of alcohol-related cancers could be avoided (around 49,500 cancers, contingent on assumed latency) as a result of the intervention scenario where alcohol consumption abruptly ceased. They also noted that up to 2% of alcohol-related cancers could be prevented (around 29,600 cancers) when the maximum consumption of all Australian adults was ≤20 g/day ( around two Australian standard drinks). The highest avoidable proportion was reported for esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (17% no alcohol consumption; 9% ≤20 g/day), followed by cancers of the oral cavity (12%; 5%) and pharynx (11%; 5%). Overall, they concluded significant attenuations in cancer incidence are possible via effective interventions to reduce alcohol intake.