A WHO-commissioned review of all available published evidence worldwide has concluded that there is no connection between mobile phone use and an increased risk of brain cancer, the agency says.
Despite the huge rise in the use of wireless technology, there has not been a corresponding increase in the incidence of brain cancers, and this applies even to people who make long phone calls or those who have used cellphones for more than a decade.
Reuters reports that the final analysis included 63 studies from 1994-2022, assessed by 11 investigators from 10 countries, including the Australian Government’s radiation protection authority.
The work assessed the effects of radiofrequency, used in cellphones as well as TVs, baby monitors and radar, said co-author Mark Elwood, professor of cancer epidemiology at the University of Auckland, New Zealand.
“None of the major questions studied showed increased risks,” he said. The review looked at cancers of the brain in adults and children, as well as cancer of the pituitary gland, salivary glands and leukaemia, and risks linked to mobile phone use, base stations, or transmitters, as well as occupational exposure. Other cancer types will be reported separately.
The review follows other similar work. The WHO and other international health bodies have said previously there is no definitive evidence of adverse health effects from the radiation used by cellphones, but called for more research.
It is currently classified as “possibly carcinogenic”, or class 2B, by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), a category used when the agency cannot rule out a potential link.
The agency's advisory group has called for the classification to be re-evaluated as soon as possible, given the new data since its last assessment in 2011.
WHO’s evaluation will be released in the first quarter of next year.
See more from MedicalBrief archives:
Cellphones and brain cancer – do we still need to worry?
Large study to look at impact of mobile phone use on teenagers
FDA warning on cellphone effects on implanted medical devices