U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy’s push for warning labels on alcoholic beverages advising there’s a link between drinking and elevated cancer risk isn’t raising much concern around Wyoming.
In Casper, a Wyoming physician who treats patients suffering from alcohol addiction and abuse sees more important issues than a cancer warning. Meanwhile at Cowboy State bars, patrons responded to the latest surgeon general advisor by questioning why the government isn’t looking into other things.
Murthy last week said that alcohol is the third leading cause of cancer and recommended an update on alcoholic beverage warning labels. He also called for a reassessment of the guideline limits for alcohol consumption.
“Alcohol is a well-established, preventable cause of cancer responsible for about 100,000 cases of cancer and 20,000 cancer deaths annually in the United States,” Murthy said. “Yet, the majority of Americans are unaware of this risk.”
Alcohol follows tobacco and obesity as the nation’s leading cause of cancers, he said.
The National Toxicology Program of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services reports any alcohol consumption over time, increases the risk of cancer.
And the more one drinks, the greater the risk.
If that means adding warnings on beer, wine and other spirits similar to those on cigarettes, some health care and bar industry professionals in Wyoming question if that’s really necessary. They also say there are other dangers of excess alcohol use that are more dangerous and prevalent.
Cancer Links
The National Cancer Institute links alcohol to cancers of the mouth, throat, voice box, esophagus, breast, liver, colon and rectum.
Wyoming Department of Health spokesperson Kim Deti said the department had no one available to speak about the surgeon general’s advisory. The agency also had no “advocacy position” on any update to alcohol warning labels.
Calls to the Wyoming State Liquor Association also stirred no response.
At the Wyoming Recovery in Casper, which focuses on clients dealing with the effects of alcohol and drug abuse, Medical Director Tom Radosevich said while it may be true that alcohol is linked to certain cancers, and any health benefits of wine touted in the past have disappeared, there is a greater mission at his agency.
“At Wyoming Recovery, we are much more focused on the fact that alcohol use is destroying people’s lives right now,” he said. “We’re not so concerned about the long-term health risks of alcohol.
“That’s a good point for people’s primary care physicians. People in my position in working in recovery from alcohol and substances have long been advocating for screening for alcohol use, alcohol misuse and alcohol use disorder.”
Radosevich said the people Wyoming Recovery treats may not be daily drinkers, but they exhibit the characteristics of alcohol-use disorder. Those include loss of control, a neglect of social responsibilities, risky use of alcohol and symptoms of withdrawal and tolerance that causes drinkers to need more and more alcohol to get the same effect.
They also tend to feel poorly emotionally or physically when alcohol is not present.
In the broader population, Radosevich said alcohol is one of “many, many carcinogens that is in our environment — diesel exhaust, obesity, processed foods, bacon, and everything else.”
As a former family physician, he said with the knowledge he has now after eight years at Wyoming Recovery, he would advocate for more screenings of patients by their doctors related to alcohol use and abuse.
Radosevich said he would rather the government focus on the “preponderance” of alcohol marketing and advertising.
“It’s frustrating for my clients who go out into the world after their rehab and they are feeling good about their sobriety. Everywhere they look there is an advertisement for alcohol,” he said. “We don’t advertise for cigarettes anymore, but maybe at some point we won’t advertise for alcohol, but I’m not going to hold my breath.”
As for a message about alcohol abstinence, he said social drinking is something each person has to decide.
“People can make up their own mind,” he said.
The U.S. surgeon general's push for a warning label on alcohol as a cancer risk is drawing mixed reactions in Wyoming. (Greg Johnson, Cowboy State Daily) 
Dr. Tom Radosevich at Wyoming Recovery sees alcohol use from a different perspective than most physicians. He daily deals with people struggling with alcohol abuse issues. (Dale Killingbeck, Cowboy State Daily) 
At Wyoming Recovery, Dr. Tom Radosevich said patients who obtain sobriety are challenged by the advertising for alcohol that predominates society. (Dale Killingbeck, Cowboy State Daily)
Raising The ‘Red Dye’ Issue
At The Gaslight Social bar and restaurant in Casper, John Lee was sipping a beer during a recent lunch hour.
He also believes the surgeon general and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services have “bigger fish to fry” than alcohol potentially causing cancer.
“I’d be more concerned about the things that Europe bans is acceptable with the U.S.,” he said. “Like red dye.”
Lee said it seems as if everything is “a carcinogen.” He suggested people drink in moderation.
At The Office Bar and Grill, Nate Harp sat at the bar with a soft drink.
He said he believes it would be “reasonable” to update the surgeon general’s warning label on alcoholic beverages to make it more specific, so people know it is a cancer-causing agent.
“I don’t think people these days educate themselves,” he said. “I don’t see the harm in it. It might get through to somebody.”
Harp said he was aware that alcohol use is linked to cancer.
Researchers cited in Murthy’s advisory say that alcohol causes cancer through metabolizing in the body to acetaldehyde, a toxic chemical that can hurt DNA and proteins in the body. It also creates molecules that contain oxygen that can damage DNA, proteins and fats in the body through oxidation.
Alcohol is also believed to affect the body’s ability to break down and absorb vitamins and nutrients such as vitamin C that act to keep cancers at bay.
In the advisory, Murthy advocates for a reevaluation of drinking guidelines.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) defines moderate drinking as two drinks or less a day for men and one drink or less a day for women. A drink is defined as 12 ounces of beer with 5% alcohol, 8 ounces of malt liquor with 7% alcohol, 5 ounces of wine with 12% alcohol, and 1.5 ounces of liquor or distilled spirits that contains 40% alcohol.
Warning Label Language
Warning labels on alcohol have to be approved by Congress and are under the authority of the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau.
The current mandated warning language states: “(1) According to the Surgeon General, women should not drink alcoholic beverages during pregnancy because of the risk of birth defects. (2) Consumption of alcohol impairs your ability to drive a car or operate machinery and may cause health problems.”
Wyoming Sen. John Barrasso, a doctor, said an updated warning label is not the answer.
“People who are concerned about how alcohol consumption might impact their health should consult with their doctor and take into account all the information currently available,” he said. “They don’t need a warning label to tell them that. As a doctor, I know firsthand how important it is for patients to have open and honest conversations with their provider as they consider what is best for them.
“The people of Wyoming are in good hands with some of the most caring and competent doctors around.”
Dale Killingbeck can be reached at dale@cowboystatedaily.com.
