Contribution of high body mass index and alcohol use to liver cancer-related mortality: A study based on 195 countries or territories

Abstract

Background: High body mass index (BMI) and alcohol use are well-defined risk factors for liver cancer.

Aims: We aim to describe the contribution of high BMI and alcohol use to liver-cancer-related death at the global and national levels.

Methods: The data of liver cancer-related mortality attributable to all known risk factors, high BMI, and alcohol use were collected from the Global Burden of Disease database. The estimated average percentage change was used to quantify the liver cancer age-standardized mortality rate (ASMR) trends.

Results: Globally, approximately 819,435 liver cancer-related deaths occurred in 2017, among which 415,867, 98,552, and 129,287 deaths could be ascribed to all 9 known risk factors, high BMI, and alcohol use, respectively. The overall ASMR increased from 4.42 per 100,000 to 5.17 per 100,000 in the study period. The liver cancer ASMR attributable to high BMI consistently increased at the global level and in most countries. The alcohol use-related liver cancer mortality decreased by 0.17% per year during the study period. However, a significant increase was found after 2008.

Conclusion: The increase in high BMI-related liver cancer mortality suggests scarce attention to overweight and highlights its priority in future prevention schedules for liver cancer. Effective prevention measures are still needed to mitigate the adverse impact of alcohol consumption.

Keywords: Alcohol use; High BMI; Liver cancer; Mortality.