A study has put to rest fears that prolonged use of mobile phones increases the chances of developing brain tumor. The study, by researchers from Institute of Cancer Research, said that cell phone usage is safe for at least the first 10 years. They, however, asserted that further studies are required to establish if using a phone for more than 10 years could lead to developing acoustic neuroma, a type of benign tumor that develops in the nerve that links the ear to the brain.
“There has been public concern about whether there is a link between brain cancer risk and the use of mobile phones. The risk of acoustic neuroma is of particular interest in this context because of the proximity of the acoustic nerve to the handset. The results of our study suggest 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,” said Anthony Swerdlow, lead author of the study.
Swerdlow and his team reviewed the cases of 678 people suffering from acoustic neuroma and studied their cell phone usage for a period of 10 years as against that by 3,553 tumor-free people. The study spanned cell phone users of Britain, Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden, which were among the first to start using cellular phones. They found no link between prolonged usage of mobile phones and the risk of developing acoustic neuroma. Also, the chances of developing the disease were not related to the technology used in the phone – analogue or digital.
However, the study was carried out on adults and the effect of regular mobile phone usage on teenagers and children is still not known. Earlier, Health Protection Agency chairman William Stewart had urged parents to keep cell phones away from children under the age of eight years.
The World Health Organization (WHO) had also declared cell phones safe for use.
“Present scientific evidence does not indicate the need for any special precautions for the use of mobile phones. If individuals are concerned, they might choose to limit their own or their children's radio frequency exposure by limiting the length of calls, or by using ‘hands-free’ devices to keep mobile phones away from the head and body,” it had said in a statement.
Meanwhile, the study was hailed by both cancer research institutes and mobile operator agencies. “Mobile phone have only been used widely over the past decade so we won't know the long-term effects for many years,” said Peter Rigby, chief executive of the Cancer Research UK, lauding the effort to understand if mobile phones caused brain tumor.
“This study outcome is consistent with the significant body of research and expert reviews reporting no health effects from the use of mobile phones,” said the Mobile Operators Association, which consists of telecom operators 3, O2, Orange, T-Mobile and Vodafone.
The findings of the study have been published in the
British Journal of Cancer.
