Hot Drinks Tied to Esophageal Cancer. Should Patients Worry? Frederik Joelving

https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/hot-drinks-tied-esophageal-cancer-should-patients-worry-2026a1000z6e Drinking very hot beverages was associated with a threefold higher risk of developing esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) than consuming warm beverages, suggested a large new study from the UK that has been making headlines across the globe. If the link is causal, consuming beverages “hot” instead of “very hot” could prevent an estimated 14% of new ESCC cases, or 440 cancers each year in the UK, researchers reported. The study of nearly 1 million people is consistent with previous research from countries such as Iran and China, where ESCC is much more common, and with the International Agency for Research on Cancer classification of beverages consumed above 65 °C (149 °F) as “probably carcinogenic” to humans based on limited epidemiologic and experimental evidence.