Over a long enough timespan, the probability that you will experience some form of cancer essentially goes to 1.

We tend to die young, of violence, malnutrition, and disease, a whole lot less often than we ever used to. Aside from the really obvious tumors, even detecting most cancers is a relatively new technique. So my hypothesis is that, historically, people died off before they broke down and developed cancers, or, if they lived long enough, either died with their cancers or because their immune systems were weakened enough that something else got them first.

How do you know that? Do you have some data on alcohol consumption since BC, and how broadly it was consumed by the world population (i.e. was it only the tiny fraction of wealthy people)? Do you have some data that shows "cancer epidemics is recent thing"?

Even if you have this data, have you eliminated all the other variables? E.g. longer lifespans may account for higher cancer rates.

Dionysios is the greek god for among other things, wine. He's been divinised for bringing wine to greece. It was invented in the northern caucasus 6 thousand years ago. If you ever read any classical literature or antique philosophy, you'll have a reference for how wine was consumed in the antiquity. And if you want to see how much the antiques lived, see Diogenes Laerteos.

Most literature until modern times was written by, about and for the wealthy. Diogenes Laertius was no where near a common person. Nor was any philosopher for that matter. I'm kind of shocked that you consider antique philosophy a window into how the vast majority of people lived in the past.

Again, show me the data.

Go find the data. I'm not going to make archaeological research to convince you.

Cancer is not a recent thing. Why would you think that? Certain types of cancers are more prevalent now, but that's because you don't typically get them until long after those BC people were dead.

Maybe that's because people are living longer than ever. In the past, maybe something else would take you out, like getting the flu when you're 70

there are also other things that can take you out - like depression for instance; however alcohol is considered to be a depressant - so it doesn't quite help here (I guess the main point here is temperance - but that's a non scientific personal opinion; its a Friday, isn't it?)

Like what the Poet said: "Whatever Gets You Thru the Night, its all right ... "

that Poet was John Lennon

We've got better at preventing heart attacks, and so now people are living long enough to get cancer.