Heavy beer drinkers have as much as a 75 percent increased risk of gastric cancer than non-drinkers -- and a more than 700 percent increased risk if they also possess a certain gene variant.
That's what a new study suggests, finding that people who drink two to three beers a day for many years have a 75 percent increased risk of gastric cancer; those who have a gene variant called rs1230025 but aren't heavy drinkers have a 30 percent higher risk of gastric cancer, compared with people who drank less than a beer daily, reports My Health News daily.
People who are heavy drinkers and possess rs1230025 have a more than 700 percent increased risk of gastric cancer compared with people who consume less than one drink a day and don't have the gene variation.
The gene variant is common and is present in about 20 percent of the general population, according to a study researcher.
