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A new study from the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) and partner institutions provides a clearer understanding of how tobacco smoking contributes to the development of cancers of the head and neck, and further illuminates the effect of combined exposure to tobacco smoke and alcohol. The study was published in Nature Genetics.
The researchers examined the mutational effects of different risk factors for head and neck cancers, such as tobacco smoking, alcohol consumption, infection with human papillomavirus (HPV), and poor oral health, across eight countries in Europe and South America. They found tobacco to be the main cause of genomic alterations in head and neck cancer, and distinguished three distinct mutagenic processes related to tobacco, which may be caused by different carcinogens present in tobacco smoke. The effects of tobacco varied across anatomical locations, suggesting that tissues have different susceptibilities to these tobacco-related carcinogens.
Combined exposure to tobacco and alcohol was found to have a higher mutagenic effect compared with alcohol alone, indicating that tobacco smoking may enhance the carcinogenic impact of alcohol consumption. Distinct mutagenic profiles were not found for other risk factors for head and neck cancers included in this study, implying that they may lead to cancer through alternative, still unidentified, mechanisms that do not cause genomic alterations.
Epidemiological studies in Europe and North and South America estimate that 7 out of 10 cases of head and neck cancer are caused by preventable behavioural risk factors, such as tobacco smoking and alcohol consumption. This study deepens the understanding of how these risk factors drive cancer development. It offers additional insights to inform prevention strategies, and emphasizes the urgency of reducing exposure to tobacco and alcohol to decrease the incidence of head and neck cancer.
This study was conducted as part of the Cancer Grand Challenges Mutographs project, involving 46 co-authors of 11 nationalities. This underscores the importance of international collaborative efforts in tackling cancer on a global scale.
Torrens L, Moody S, de Carvalho AC, Kazachkova M, Abedi-Ardekani B, Cheema S, et al.
The complexity of tobacco smoke-induced mutagenesis in head and neck cancer
Nat Genet. Published online 31 March 2025;
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41588-025-02134-0
