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Alcohol and Cancer: Global Developments, Policy Proposals and Legal Challenges

Alcohol is a carcinogen and is causally connected to cancer in multiple sites in the body. Yet, public knowledge of the cancer-related risks of alcohol consumption is low in many countries. Attempts by governments to educate their populations about the association between alcohol consumption and cancer have been strongly opposed by the alcohol industry and countries with large alcohol export interests. In 2017, the Yukon government halted a trial of alcohol and cancer warning labels after receiving legal threats from the alcohol industry in Canada. Now, in 2023, the Irish Government is battling legal opposition (including from Canada) to its new health warning labels ‘There is a direct link between alcohol and fatal cancers’. What are the arguments for and against alcohol and cancer warnings? How should the Irish Government respond? 

Dean Colleen M. Flood and Dean Jane Philpott welcome Dr. Paula O’Brien from the University of Melbourne to Queen’s University for this engaging talk. Dr. Heather Johnson will discuss the presentation followed by a Q&A.