BACKGROUND: Alcohol is a well-established risk factor for head and neck cancer (HNC). This study aims to explore the effect of alcohol intensity and duration, as joint continuous exposures, on HNC risk. METHODS: Data from 26 case-control studies in the INHANCE Consortium were used, including never and current drinkers who drunk ≤10 drinks/day for ≤54 years (24234 controls, 4085 oral cavity, 3359 oropharyngeal, 983 hypopharyngeal and 3340 laryngeal cancers). The dose-response relationship between the risk and the joint exposure to drinking intensity and duration was investigated through bivariate regression spline models, adjusting for potential confounders, including tobacco smoking. RESULTS: For all subsites, cancer risk steeply increased with increasing drinks/day, with no appreciable threshold effect at lower intensities. For each intensity level, the risk of oral cavity, hypopharyngeal and laryngeal cancers did not vary according to years of drinking, suggesting no effect of duration. For oropharyngeal cancer, the risk increased with durations up to 28 years, flattening thereafter. The risk peaked at the higher levels of intensity and duration for all subsites (odds ratio = 7.95 for oral cavity, 12.86 for oropharynx, 24.96 for hypopharynx and 6.60 for larynx). CONCLUSIONS: Present results further encourage the reduction of alcohol intensity to mitigate HNC risk.

• MeSH
• časové faktory MeSH
• dospělí MeSH
• kouření škodlivé účinky   epidemiologie   patologie   MeSH
• lidé středního věku MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• mladiství MeSH
• mladý dospělý MeSH
• nádory hlavy a krku epidemiologie   etiologie   MeSH
• nádory hrtanu epidemiologie   etiologie   MeSH
• nádory orofaryngu epidemiologie   etiologie   MeSH
• nádory úst epidemiologie   etiologie   MeSH
• pití alkoholu škodlivé účinky   epidemiologie   patologie   MeSH
• rizikové faktory MeSH
• senioři nad 80 let MeSH
• senioři MeSH
• studie případů a kontrol MeSH
• stupeň závažnosti nemoci MeSH
• Check Tag
• dospělí MeSH
• lidé středního věku MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• mladiství MeSH
• mladý dospělý MeSH
• mužské pohlaví MeSH
• senioři nad 80 let MeSH
• senioři MeSH
• ženské pohlaví MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH
• práce podpořená grantem MeSH
• Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural MeSH
• Research Support, N.I.H., Intramural MeSH