Alcohol companies must stop 'pink washing' cancer danger

The friend who sent it to me was a breast cancer survivor and had recently celebrated the all-clear after a long battle and gruelling treatment. We both wondered, why, when alcohol is a significant risk factor for breast cancer, was this charity raising funds from selling rosé?

And should big alcohol be able to simply "pink wash" their products with cancer research support when the research clearly points to alcohol as a risk factor to breast cancer?

More and more research is coming to light showing the link between alcohol consumption and breast cancer. The risk of breast cancer increases with each unit of alcohol consumed per day.

A research paper from the national library of medicine states "an approximate 30-50 per cent increase in breast cancer risk from 15-30 grams per day of alcohol consumption" - that's about one or two drinks per day.

In 2021 the World Health Organisation stated breast cancer had become the most common cancer globally and concluded reducing alcohol consumption could greatly reduce its risk.

Then there is the fact most women don't know alcohol increases their risk of breast cancer. How could they, when there is no broad health campaign to spread this knowledge, and cancer research stickers appear on the front of their bottles?

A study from a leading Melbourne University in 2023 found only one in five Australian women were aware of the link between alcohol and breast cancer. That means 80 per cent of women are not aware their seemingly innocent evening wine is increasing their risk of breast cancer.

Earlier this year, The Lancet, the world's most respected medical journal, issued their breast cancer commission findings which are somewhat confronting. They predict by 2040 we will see 3 million breast cancer diagnoses a year (in 2020 it was 2 million a year).

However, the report also said this upswing is not inevitable if we step in now to create change. One suggestion was that policymakers ban the commercial marketing of products linked to causing breast cancer, such as alcohol.

So, what else could or should we be doing to prevent an upswing of 1 million additional diagnoses of breast cancer by 2040?

To start, we could legislate for a ban of commercial marketing of alcohol, including alcohol sponsorship of cancer research or cancer support organisations by alcohol business or producers.

This would mean a drop in funds potentially, but just like the reckoning that has come in the mining and fossil fuel sectors and arts sponsorship, we need a reckoning of big booze companies pink washing wine sales when there is clear evidence alcohol is a major risk factor for breast cancer.

And we could look to our overseas counterparts for some tips. Canada was the first country in 2023 to come out and say "there is no safe amount of alcohol" and lower its recommended weekly units to two per week.

At 10 standard drinks a week and a maximum of four in one sitting, Australia's health recommendations are far behind this progressive Canadian position.

In 2025, Ireland will be the first country to issue health warnings on alcoholic products in the way the tobacco industry was forced to in the 1980s. Could we do the same?

Maybe one day, you might just see a health warning about the link between alcohol and cancer instead of a sticker promoting the sale of wine to support cancer research.

I'm not advocating for prohibition. I believe everyone has the right to choose to drink alcohol if they want to. But I do think big alcohol should be held to greater account than what it currently is, and own up to the cancer risk inherent in its products.

And as for my friend, she's made the decision to stop drinking alcohol. The risk is just too great for her.