Department of Medicine I, Division of Hepatology, University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, Germany. felix.stickel@med.uni-erlangen.de
Alcohol is a major aetiological factor in hepatocarcinogenesis but our understanding of its importance as a modulating factor is just beginning to emerge. In the present review, a number of possible cofactors and mechanisms are discussed by which alcohol may enhance the development of hepatoma. These include dietary or environmental carcinogens ingested along with alcoholic beverages, alcoholic cirrhosis as a precancerous condition, and the effects of alcohol metabolism.