Frances Black (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank all of the witnesses for coming in today. I also thank all of the front-line workers in this area, as well as those working in NGOs. Everybody knows somebody who has cancer. We will have a family member who has had cancer. Two of my family members have passed away from cancer. It is a very important topic.

I am aware that there has been a lot of talk about cigarette smoking but there has not been much said about alcohol and alcohol-related cancers. Evidence has come out which shows that alcohol increases people's risk of several types of cancers, including mouth, throat and liver cancer. It is also responsible for one in eight breast cancers in Ireland. People do not have to be drinking in a harmful way to get breast cancer. That is an important point. Every year in Ireland, 900 people are diagnosed with alcohol-related cancers and around 500 people die from these diseases.

We know that for people who drink and smoke, their chances of getting cancer of the mouth, throat or oesophagus are also very high. There is no safe level of alcohol when it comes to cancer, but it is very well known that if you drink less, you lower your risk of developing alcohol-related cancers.

There has been public awareness on this issue, but should there be more talk about it? Even in our discussion this morning we talked a lot about smoking and the impact of it. That is great, but those results are quite shocking and there should be much more awareness about the impact of alcohol. I was very involved in the Public Health (Alcohol) Act 2018. I am also aware of the pressure that came on the Department and the HSE with regard to this issue, in particular from the alcohol industry. Do the witnesses think there should be a much higher level of public awareness campaign on the impact of alcohol harm and cancer?