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Journal of Experimental & Clinical Cancer Research
Published in: Journal of Experimental & Clinical Cancer Research 1/2011

Open Access 01-12-2011 | Research

Short-term salivary acetaldehyde increase due to direct exposure to alcoholic beverages as an additional cancer risk factor beyond ethanol metabolism

Authors: Dirk W Lachenmeier, Yulia B Monakhova

Published in: Journal of Experimental & Clinical Cancer Research | Issue 1/2011

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Abstract

Background

An increasing body of evidence now implicates acetaldehyde as a major underlying factor for the carcinogenicity of alcoholic beverages and especially for oesophageal and oral cancer. Acetaldehyde associated with alcohol consumption is regarded as 'carcinogenic to humans' (IARC Group 1), with sufficient evidence available for the oesophagus, head and neck as sites of carcinogenicity. At present, research into the mechanistic aspects of acetaldehyde-related oral cancer has been focused on salivary acetaldehyde that is formed either from ethanol metabolism in the epithelia or from microbial oxidation of ethanol by the oral microflora. This study was conducted to evaluate the role of the acetaldehyde that is found as a component of alcoholic beverages as an additional factor in the aetiology of oral cancer.

Methods

Salivary acetaldehyde levels were determined in the context of sensory analysis of different alcoholic beverages (beer, cider, wine, sherry, vodka, calvados, grape marc spirit, tequila, cherry spirit), without swallowing, to exclude systemic ethanol metabolism.

Results

The rinsing of the mouth for 30 seconds with an alcoholic beverage is able to increase salivary acetaldehyde above levels previously judged to be carcinogenic in vitro, with levels up to 1000 μM in cases of beverages with extreme acetaldehyde content. In general, the highest salivary acetaldehyde concentration was found in all cases in the saliva 30 sec after using the beverages (average 353 μM). The average concentration then decreased at the 2-min (156 μM), 5-min (76 μM) and 10-min (40 μM) sampling points. The salivary acetaldehyde concentration depends primarily on the direct ingestion of acetaldehyde contained in the beverages at the 30-sec sampling, while the influence of the metabolic formation from ethanol becomes the major factor at the 2-min sampling point.

Conclusions

This study offers a plausible mechanism to explain the increased risk for oral cancer associated with high acetaldehyde concentrations in certain beverages.
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Metadata
Title
Short-term salivary acetaldehyde increase due to direct exposure to alcoholic beverages as an additional cancer risk factor beyond ethanol metabolism
Authors
Dirk W Lachenmeier
Yulia B Monakhova
Publication date
01-12-2011
Publisher
BioMed Central
Published in
Journal of Experimental & Clinical Cancer Research / Issue 1/2011
Electronic ISSN: 1756-9966
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/1756-9966-30-3

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