The COVID-19 pandemic has reversed a downward trend in deaths from alcohol-related liver cancer, reports infohub.kz.
Mortality from alcohol-related liver cancer had been declining before the pandemic, but from 2020 to 2023 the trend reversed, according to News-Medical. Researchers analyzed data from the Global Burden of Disease study covering 1990-2023 across 204 countries and territories. They examined mortality trends for four alcohol-related conditions: liver cancer, cirrhosis, alcoholic cardiomyopathy, and alcohol use disorders.
While global rates for cirrhosis, cardiomyopathy, and alcohol use disorders have been gradually declining since 1990, liver cancer mortality followed a different pattern. From 2016 to 2019, the rate decreased by 0.74% per year, but during the pandemic (2020-2023) it increased by 1.73% annually. The estimated annual increase was 2.73% among women and 1.47% among men.
Researchers suggest that disruptions in cancer screening, delays in diagnosis and treatment, and changes in alcohol consumption habits contributed to the shift. Model projections indicate that by 2050, deaths from alcohol-related liver cancer will continue to rise, particularly among women.