Two large UK cohorts (n=977,282 adults; Million Women Study and UK Biobank) examined whether self-reported hot drink temperature and frequency predicted oesophageal cancer subtypes (SCC and adenocarcinoma) over ~11–14 years of follow-up using Cox regression.
Drinking at 'very hot' vs. 'warm' temperatures was linked to a 3-fold higher SCC risk (RR=3.17, 95% CI 2.49–4.03) but not adenocarcinoma (RR=0.92). Drinking 6+ hot drinks/day vs. fewer raised SCC risk by 71% (RR=1.71). An estimated 14% of SCC cases could be prevented if 'very hot' drinkers shifted to 'hot' temperatures.
Drink temperature was self-reported (subjective categories, not measured in °C), which may introduce misclassification. The study population is middle-aged UK adults, so findings may not generalise to populations with different baseline drink temperatures. Residual confounding from unmeasured lifestyle factors cannot be excluded.
Advise patients — especially those at risk for oesophageal SCC — to avoid drinking very hot beverages and to limit intake to fewer than 6 hot drinks per day. Cooling drinks before consumption is a simple, low-cost preventive behaviour worth recommending.
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