Alcohol-related medicosocial problems and liver disorders: Burden of alcoholic cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma in Turkiye

The World Health Organization 2018 report stated that 2.3 billion persons over 15 years old consume alcohol, and a total of 3.0–3.3 million people died because of uncontrolled or harmful alcohol intake in 2016. Injuries, accidents, liver cirrhosis, and other medical disorders are mainly responsible for alcohol-related disability and deaths. After emphasizing the importance of alcohol-related disorders and necessary universal precautions, we focus on alcohol consumption features and alcohol-related cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma in Turkiye. It is estimated that alcohol per se is responsible for 12% of cirrhosis and 10% of hepatocellular carcinoma cases. Additional factors such as hepatitis B virus and hepatitis C virus infections have markedly increased the risk of the development of hepatocellular carcinoma in alcoholic cirrhosis.