Effect of cigarette smoking and alcohol consumption in the etiology of cancers of the digestive tract

This study presents the comparative patterns of risk of selected digestive tract cancers (esophagus, stomach, colon, rectum and liver) for males in relation to cigarette smoking and alcohol drinking, based on the data from case‐control studies conducted in the Korea Cancer Center Hospital (KCCH). There was strong positive association between cigarette smoking and esophageal cancer, but none of the other sites was significantly related to cigarette smoking. In esophageal cancer, a dose‐ dependent effect for cigarette smoking was observed, with the odds ratio ranging from 1.29 for ever smoking up to 1 pack daily to 3.17 for smokers of more than 2 packs per day. The risk declined markedly following cessation of smoking. Cancers of the esophagus, rectum and liver were strongly related to alcohol consumption. Compared with non‐drinkers, the OR for heavy drinkers was 9.14 in esophageal cancer, 4.75 in rectal cancer and 2.46 in liver cancer. In cancer of the stomach and colon, however, there was no association with alcohol drinking.