Alcohol use accounts for 3.5 percent of all U.S. cancer
deaths, or between 18,000 and 21,000
deaths a
year.
Lost years: About 18 years of potential life are lost per cancer death. That means a person who died at age 60 from alcohol-related cancer would have otherwise probably lived to 78.
Number of drinks: The majority of alcohol-related cancer deaths occurred among those who drank more than three alcoholic beverages a day, but about 30 percent occurred in those who drank less than 1.