Using a mobile phone regularly does not cause cancer, scientists conclude
Published: August 31, 2005
“There has been public concern about whether there is a link between brain cancer risk and use of mobile phones,” Professor Swerdlow said. “The results of our study suggest that there is no substantial risk in the first decade after starting use. Whether there are longer-term risks remains unknown reflecting the fact that this is a relatively recent technology,” he said.
Other studies have suggested that radiation from mobile phones can cause localised heating in the brain and some epidemiological investigations have pointed to an increased risk of cancer.
Last May, a study found that people who use mobile phones regularly in rural areas are three times more likely than city dwellers to suffer from brain tumours.
Scientists believe that rural users of mobile phones receive relatively large doses of microwave radiation from their handsets to compensate for the fact that base stations in the countryside are further apart than in the city. However, a study published last year of 427 people with brain tumours found no evidence to suggest that mobile phones were responsible, although the scientists behind this study warned that further research is still needed.
Professor Peter Rigby, chief executive of the charity Cancer Research UK, said the latest study is a great step towards resolving the issue of whether mobile phones cause brain cancer. “Mobile phone have only been used widely over the past decade so we won’t know the long-term effects for many years,” Professor Rigby said.
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