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Epidemiological and animal studies undertaken by the U.S. cell phone industry and others have yielded mixed results.
National Cancer Institute Statement: International Study Shows No Increased Risk of Brain Tumors from Cell Phone Use - May 17, 2010 - Interphone, an international collaboration, and the largest study of its kind to date, reported that overall, cell phone users have no increased risk of two of the most common forms of brain cancer -- glioma and meningioma. Furthermore, there was no evidence of risk with progressively increasing number of calls, longer call time, or time since the start of the use of cell phones. However, for the small proportion of study participants who used cell phones the most – measured as cumulative call time over their lifetime – there was a suggestion of increased risk of glioma, though the authors call this finding inconclusive. The study was published online May 17, 2010, in the International Journal of Epidemiology.
"No Link Between Cell Phone Use and Brain Tumors" - 12 Apr 2005. A new study has found no link between use of cell phones and the risk of developing a brain tumor. The study is published in the April 12 issue of Neurology, the scientific journal of the American Academy of Neurology.. The Danish study questioned 427 people with brain tumors and 822 people without brain tumors about their cell phone use. The study found no increased risk for brain tumors related to cell phone use, frequency of use, or number of years of use.
Finnish Study: February 2005: The amount of radiation most popular cell phones emit is well below agreed limits and largely in line with data published by manufacturers. The survey conducted by Finland's Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority (STUK) covered 16 new models made by top handset makers including Finland's own Nokia, Motorola of the United States and South Korea's Samsung Electronics. At this level, the study found that head tissue does not warm significantly and no other harmful effects have been proved scientifically.
Video interviews with American Cancer Society, and other researchers.
Orebro, Sweden, 1999: No connection: In a study published in 1999, investigators at the Orebro Medical Centre in Sweden compared the past mobile phone use of 209 Swedish brain tumor patients and 425 healthy people. Conclusion: The study found no mobile phone/brain cancer link "in virtually all respects," cancer researcher John E. Moulder, Ph.D., says in the August 2000 issue of IEEE Spectrum, the official magazine of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. Investigators did find that mobile phone users who got certain types of brain tumors tended to report using the phone on the side of the head where they developed the tumor. The study's limitations, according to Moulder, include a weak association between cell phone use and tumor development, as well as a possibility that the cancer patients' recollections were biased by already knowing on which side of their head the brain cancer developed.
Joshua Muscat, 1999: Glioma: In a yet-unpublished study presented at a 1999 scientific meeting, researcher Joshua Muscat looked for an association between mobile phone use and a type of brain cancer called glioma. Muscat did not find evidence that cell phone use increased people's risk of this type of brain cancer generally. He did, however, observe an increase in one rare kind of glioma, which FDA scientists say might have occurred by chance. Interestingly, with increased hours of mobile phone use, the risk tended to decrease rather than increase as might be expected.
A few animal studies have suggested that low levels of RF exposure could speed up development of cancer in laboratory animals. In one recent Australian study, for example, mice genetically altered to be predisposed to developing lymphoma got more than twice as many of these cancers when exposed to RF energy compared to mice not exposed to the radiation.
A large number of laboratory tests have been conducted to assess RF's effects on genetic material, looking for mutations, chromosomal changes, DNA strand breaks, and structural changes in blood cells' genetic material. One kind of test, called a micronucleus assay, showed structural changes in genetic material after exposure to simulated cell phone radiation. The changes occurred only after 24 hours of continuous exposure, which experts say raises questions about this test's sensitivity to heating effects and whether that sensitivity could be solely responsible for the results.
More Information
Follow-up with:
Where did the Fears start? The American Council on Science and Health
Cellular Telephone Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) - The SAR is a value that corresponds to the relative amount of RF energy absorbed in the head of a user of a wireless handset. The FCC limit for public exposure from cellular telephones is an SAR level of 1.6 watts per kilogram (1.6 W/kg). Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) for Wireless Phones and Devices Available at FCC Web Site.
EMF - Electromagnetic Radiation, Power lines and your health
* EMF FAQs
* EMF - Middle Ground
Agencies
Federal Communications Commission RF Safety Program
World Health Organization International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection
National Cancer Institute - Cellular Telephone Use and Cancer, 01/04/2002
"No Association Found Between Cellular Phone Use and Risk of Brain Tumors."
"Questions and Answers for the National Cancer Institute Study of Brain Tumors and Use of Cellular Telephones."
Basic information about brain tumors:
More cell phone usage tumor and cancer news, studies and articles
December 04, 2009: USA Today: Four-country study finds no cancer link to cellphone usage. Researchers in four Scandinavian countries found no increase in brain tumor diagnoses from 1998 to 2003 in a large new study, the latest to find no link between rising cellphone use and rates of brain cancer.
October 13, 2009 - Mobile Phone Use and Risk of Tumors: A Meta-Analysis - by Seung-Kwon Myung, Woong Ju, Diana D. McDonnell, Yeon Ji Lee, Gene Kazinets, Chih-Tao Cheng,and Joel M. Moskowitz
March 30, 2008 - 'Mobile phones 'more dangerous than smoking' - A self-published and non-peer reviewed meta-study by Dr. Vini Khurana, an Australian neurosurgeon, presented an "increasing body of evidence ... for a link between mobile phone usage and certain brain tumours" and that it "is anticipated that this danger has far broader public health ramifications than asbestos and smoking". On Larry King, on May 27, 2008, Dr. Khurana said: "the concern is not just brain tumors, but other health effects associated or reported to be associated with cell phones, including behavioral disturbances, salivary gland tumors, male infertility and microwave sickness syndrome". However, according to Wikipedia, this was criticized as ‘…an unbalanced analysis of the literature, which is also selective in support of the author's claims.'
February 2008: Tokyo Women's Medical University compared phone use in 322 brain cancer patients with 683 healthy people and found that regularly using a mobile did not significantly affect the likelihood of getting brain cancer. "Using our newly developed and more accurate techniques, we found no association between mobile phone use and cancer, providing more evidence to suggest they don't cause brain cancer," Naohito Yamaguchi, who led the research, said. His team's findings were published in the British Journal of Cancer.
December 5, 2006 - Scientists in Denmark tracked over 420,000 cell phone users over the course of 21 years in an attempt to determine if if cell phone use causes cancer. As reported in ABC News, they found the RF energy produced by the phones did not correlate to an increased incidence of the disease. From the article: 'This so-called Danish cohort "is probably the strongest study out there because of the outstanding registries they keep,' said Joshua Muscat of Pennsylvania State University, who also has studied cell phones and cancer. 'As the body of evidence accumulates, people can become more reassured that these devices are safe, but the final word is not there yet,' Muscat added."
April 2006 - the Swedish National Institute for Working Life issued a report this week, published in the International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health, disputing two earlier studies that claimed cell phone use has no correlation to increased brain tumor risk. The researchers examined the cell phone usage of 905 adults who developed malignant brain tumors. They found that people with more than 2,000 hours of total talk time had 3.7 times the risk of developing brain cancer when compared with nonusers. 2,000 hours is about an hour of talk time every Monday through Friday for 10 years. The study, also found a 2 times increase for tumors specifically on the side of the head where the cell phone was generally used. But it should be noted that the study relied on the memory of the subjects for how long they used their phones, for as much as a decade ago, according to a Daily News interview with Dr. Lydia Zablotska, an epidemiologist at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health. "You're interviewing subjects in an era when everyone has a suspicion that cell phones may be harmful," Zablotska said of the study's shortcomings.
January 2006 - A four-year long British study performed by the London-based Institute of Cancer Research and three British universities found that talking on a cell phone had no effect on tumor rates. The researchers included 966 people with glioma brain tumors and 1,716 healthy respondents. Individuals were questioned on first use, lifetime years of use, cumulative hours of use, and number of calls they made.
May 17, 2005 - Swedish Study Finds Cell Phone-Brain Tumor Link - A Swedish study finds that users of digital phones in rural areas may be at greater risk of brain cancer. Its authors say the link is troubling, although they acknowledge that the amount of data is small and wider research is needed to amplify the findings. The chance of developing a malignant brain tumor was roughly eight times higher for cell phone users in the Swedish countryside than in urban areas. The risk of developing any brain tumor was four times higher for country dwellers using mobile phones for five years or more, compared with those who did not use the devices. The BBC present a program (Panarama) which countered Dr Lennart Hardell's claims (see this page on the BBC website), " The National Radiological Protection Board (NRPB), which advises the government on safety levels, said the study "the study did not involve enough people to offer compelling evidence, and any difference in risk it did find was not statistically significant. . "
March 21, 2005 - Fox news and CNN News both report that on March 16, 2005, a federal appeals court in Maryland reinstated five class-action lawsuits that allege that the cell phone industry has failed to protect consumers from unsafe levels of radiation. Fox quotes a Dr. Henry Lai, a bioengineering professor at the University of Washington, as saying that electromagnetic radiation emitted from cell phones may damage DNA and cause benign brain tumors. Dr. Lai also agrees with EHSO's recommendation to use a headset to minimize potential exposure.
Study: Cell phones pose no cancer risk Long-term research still needed, scientists say - MSNBC - The Associated Press - Jan.14, 2004 - LONDON - There is no evidence linking mobile phones to cancer or other health problems, but more research needs to be done to be sure, a panel of experts said Wednesday. The scientists, who are advising the British government, said existing research into the health effects of cell phones “does not give cause for concern” that the devices cause cancer “nor any other adverse health effect.”
Cell Phone Suit Gets Bad Reception - Friday, October 04, 2002 - Fox News
Cell Phones Don't Cause Cancer, Rat Study Finds -Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, June 25, 2002 — Radiation from cell phones doesn't appear to cause cancer in rats, according to a study by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. The research team exposed rats to the two most common types of cell phone radiation for four hours a day, five days a week for two years. “We tried to mimic a high level of exposure that humans might experience,” says study leader Joseph L. Roti Roti, Ph.D., professor of radiation oncology, of biochemistry and molecular biophysics and of cell biology and physiology. “We found no statistically significant increases in any tumor type, including brain, liver, lung or kidney, compared to the control group.”
"No Association Found Between Cellular Phone Use and Risk of Brain Tumors."- National Cancer Institute - 12-21-2000 - Researchers at the National Cancer Institute (NCI) found that people who used cellular phones did not have an increased risk of brain tumors compared to non-users. The study, due to be published in the Jan. 11, 2001, issue of the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM)*, was released on Dec. 19, 2000.
Questions and Answers for the National Cancer Institute Study of Brain Tumors and Use of Cellular Telephones - National Cancer Institute - 12-21-2000 - The results pertain primarily to patterns of cell phone use in the United States during the early to middle 1990s. During the period of this study, there was no evidence that use of hand-held cellular phones caused tumors of the brain and nervous system. The findings suggest that, if there was any increase in risk, it was small, particularly for malignant tumors (glioma).
Cell phones increase convenience, but are they really safe? - Spring 2001 - Berkley Medical Journal
Cell Phones and Brain Tumors - ABC News - May 29, 2001 - A Neurosurgeon's Thoughts - a recent report from the General Accounting Office found that federal agencies do not always provide the latest information and research on cell phone radiation to consumers, and often the information they do provide is too technical for the average consumer to fully understand. Dr. Ted Schwartz, a neurosurgeon from New York Presbyterian Hospital, speaks to the popular concern about the possible connection between cell phones and brain tumors.
Huge study can't link cancers to cell phones - Danish results add to research that shows no danger - The Associated Press - Wednesday, February 7, 2001 - Scientists who tracked the health of 420,000 Danish cell phone users found no sign the devices increase cancer risk -- the biggest study yet to provide reassurance about the phones' safety, but one that won't end the controversy. The study, published in today's Journal of the National Cancer Institute, found cell phone users are no more likely than anyone else to suffer brain or nervous system cancers, leukemia, or salivary gland tumors.
Are mobile phones safe? Research intensifies as the public grows wary of one of its favorite communications tools - IEEE Spectrum Online - August 2000 - By Kenneth R. Foster, University of Pennsylvania & John E. Moulder, Medical College of Wisconsin - A MOTORIST USING A WIRELESS TELEPHONE might be worried about having an accident, even while being reassured that if one were to happen, he or she could call for help. Recently some scientists and lay people have expressed alarm at another possible danger--that the use of mobile phones itself may harm the user's health, perhaps even causing cancer.
Don't get fooled again - USA Today - 08/09/99- Before rushing to judgment, consider the nature of the media and the nature of science. The media essentially created the cell phone scare when CNN's Larry King Live hosted widower David Reynard in 1993. Reynard was suing several phone companies because his wife, who used a cell phone, died of a brain tumor. Reynard and his lawyer didn't have much of what you might call evidence, which is why they didn't get very far in the courts. But the issue has hung around as a media fascination. Television shows and news reports can, in a matter of moments, leave a lasting impression. Science is different. It takes years to collect and analyze data, and that's just for one study
Positions by Authorities...
...that conducted their own research or are credible to offer a meaningful opinion
Cell Phones Are Dangerous
Note: It has been very difficult to find credible sources that have taken the position that cell phones are dangerous. This may be because this position is unsupportable (like taking the position that the earth is flat) or that there is new evidence that contradicts current thinking (like Copernicus' calculations that the earth revolves around the sun) . Credible sources means persons of institutions whose education, practice, past performance, and affiliations would lead a logical person to conclude that they are knowledgeable about the subject and have conducted thorough, accurate and unbiased research. If you would like to recommend a source, please
Dr. Mercola - Cell Phones and Cancer He has an extensive website, but he is an an osteopathic physician, not a medical doctor. He also has not conducted any research himself; he just reviewed a study conducted by a television program (20/20) and we have all seen from Dan Rather's performance lately that the news media are not to be trusted as credible sources - they are meant to report the news objectively, not create research.
Cell Phones Do Not Cause Cancer
Tokyo Women's Medical University compared phone use in 322 brain cancer patients with 683 healthy people and found that regularly using a mobile did not significantly affect the likelihood of getting brain cancer. "Using our newly developed and more accurate techniques, we found no association between mobile phone use and cancer, providing more evidence to suggest they don't cause brain cancer," Naohito Yamaguchi, who led the research, said. His team's findings were published in the British Journal of Cancer.
American Cancer Society - "Considerable research has also found no clear association between any other electronic consumer products and cancer. Cell phones, microwave ovens and related appliances emit low-frequency radiation—the part of the electromagnetic spectrum that includes radio waves and radar. Ionizing radiation such as gamma rays and X-rays can increase cancer risk by causing changes to DNA in cells of the body. Low frequency, non-ionizing radiation does not cause these DNA changes"
Medical College of Wisconsin - A very detailed page, with a considerable amount of information, including both FAQs and citations to references; it can be technically overwhelming for non scientists.
National Institute of Health / National Cancer Institute - April 2000. "There was no evidence of higher brain tumor risk among people who use hand-held cellular phones compared to those who do not use them."
The Independent Expert Group chaired by Sir William Stewart published its report on the health implications of mobile phones in 2000. Two later reports by the independent Advisory Group on Non-ionising Radiation (AGNIR) and the most recent “Mobile Phones and Health 2004” by the National Radiological Protection Board (NRPB), have endorsed Stewart's findings. All three reports can be found at: www.nrpb.org.uk.