Indeed, East Asians carrying the ALDH2*2 variant are at higher risk of esophageal, head and neck, and lung cancer if they regularly consume alcohol compared to people with the wild-type ALDH2 (Baan et al., 2007; IARC Working Group on the Evaluation of Carcinogenic Risks to Humans, 2010; Im et al., 2022). Here, ALDH2 is linked to lung cancer.