Risk Factors and Cancer

Drinking alcohol raises the risk of some cancers. The less alcohol you drink, the lower the risk of cancer.

Drinking alcohol raises your risk of getting six kinds of cancer. All types of alcoholic drinks are linked with cancer. The more you drink, the higher your cancer risk.

Photo of a nurse giving a vaccine to a pre-teen boy while his mother looks on.

HPV and Cancer

Human papillomavirus (HPV) has been found to be associated with several kinds of cancer: cervical, vulvar, vaginal, penile, anal, and oropharyngeal (back of the throat, including the base of the tongue and tonsils).

Tobacco use causes cancer throughout the body. Mouth and throat (oral cavity and pharynx); esophagus; voice box (larynx); lung, bronchus, and trachea; acute myeloid leukemia; liver; kidney and renal pelvis; stomach; uterine cervix; pancreas; colon and rectum; and urinary bladder. Tobacco use includes smoked (cigarettes and cigars) and smokeless (snuff and chewing tobacco) tobacco products that, to date, have been shown to cause cancer.

Tobacco and Cancer

Smoking tobacco products causes almost nine of every 10 cases of lung cancer, and also can cause cancer almost anywhere in your body.

Family Health History and Cancer

Telling your doctor about your family health history is a first step to find out if you may have a higher cancer risk. It will help you and your doctor decide what tests you need, when to start, and how often to be tested.

Preventing Cancer Across a Lifetime

CDC scientists and other experts explored ways to lower cancer risk at different ages: early childhood, adolescence, early adulthood, midlife, and older adulthood.