Cancer Survivors Still Drink at Steady Rates
A study of nearly 4 million U.S. adults finds drinking among cancer survivors held at 45.8% between 2016 and 2024.
Updated on Nov. 7, 2026 in Cancer
Live Poll
Have you cut back on drinking alcohol in the past few years?
A study of nearly 4 million U.S. adults found 45.8% of those with a cancer history reported drinking alcohol in the past 30 days in both 2016 and 2024. Over the same period, drinking among adults without a cancer history fell from 53.9% to 51.5%.
Why it matters
Alcohol is a known cause of several cancers, including cancers of the mouth, throat, esophagus, liver, colon, rectum and breast. The findings suggest cancer survivors are not reducing drinking at the same pace as other adults.
The figures come from self-reported answers from nearly 4 million U.S. adults, comparing cancer survivors with those who have no cancer history from 2016 through 2024. Because different people were surveyed in each snapshot, the study cannot show whether individual survivors changed their drinking after diagnosis.
The players
Washington University in St. Louis
A private research university in St. Louis, Missouri, known for its medical and public health research programs.
Cancer Causes & Control
A peer-reviewed epidemiology journal that publishes research on the causes and prevention of cancer.
The details
Researchers compared drinking trends for people with and without a cancer history, asking whether they had ever been told they had cancer and about recent drinking. Survivors were less likely than other adults to binge drink, and drinking was lower for most cancer types, except survivors of testicular cancer, melanoma and other skin cancers. The study was published in Cancer Causes & Control and announced by Washington University in St. Louis.
Timeline
2016: Comparison period begins, with 45.8% of cancer survivors reporting recent drinking.
2024: Comparison period ends, with 45.8% of cancer survivors still reporting recent drinking.
Oct. 30, 2026: Washington University in St. Louis announces the findings.
Health Landscape
The study relies on the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, a long-running CDC telephone survey used to track health behaviors across the U.S. population. It extends that survey's data to a question public health officials have raised about whether cancer diagnoses prompt lasting changes in alcohol use.
Cancer survivors who drink may want to discuss their alcohol use with their care team, since alcohol is linked to several cancer types. The findings do not show that any individual should change their habits based on population-level trends alone.
The takeaway
Cancer survivors are drinking at about the same rate in 2024 as in 2016, even as drinking declined among other adults. Talking with a doctor about alcohol after a cancer diagnosis can help reduce risks tied to several cancer types.
Further reading
Explore more on Cancer coverage for context on how treatment and prevention research is evolving.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Curetoday.
Live Poll
Have you cut back on drinking alcohol in the past few years?
