This article was originally published in the UCO Vista on June 8, 2011. Check out UCentralMedia here for more from the longest-running news source in Oklahoma.
A working group convened by the World Health Organization and the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) has determined that radiofrequency electromagnetic fields, such as those emanating from mobile phones, are “possibly carcinogenic to humans.”
Last Monday, the 31-member interdisciplinary group made their conclusions public via a virtual press conference that included Dr. Jonathan Samet, the chairperson of the group, and IARC director Christopher Wild.
“After reviewing essentially all the evidence that is relevant to looking at radiofrequency electromagnetic fields, the working group classified radiofrequency electromagnetic fields as possibly carcinogenic to humans,” Samet said. “That is, within the classification used by the International Agency for Research on Cancer or IARC, a 2B classification.”
The group came to the conclusion that there was a possible link between long-term, heavy cell phone usage and a malignant form of brain cancer called glioma. However, the link was not causal, only correlative.
“I think, having reviewed all this evidence,” Samet said, “the working group members were also struck by the need for further research to fill in the gaps that were identified.”
In 2010, a study conducted by multiple research institutions, including IARC, was published by Oxford University. The study, called “Brain tumour risk in relation to mobile telephone use: results of the INTERPHONE international case-control study,” came to the conclusion that “Overall, no increase in risk of glioma or meningioma was observed with use of mobile phones. There were suggestions of an increased risk of glioma at the highest exposure levels, but biases and error prevent a causal interpretation.” It added, “The possible effects of long-term heavy use of mobile phones require further investigation.”
The IARC’s classification of radiofrequency electromagnetic fields as possibly carcinogenic, supported by the conclusion of the INTERPHONE study, comes at a time when mobile phone usage has surpassed five billion subscriptions internationally. Whether cell phones and cancer share a causal risk is a growing topic of interest.
“I think again we founds some threads of evidence telling us about how cancers might occur, but I think there are acknowledged gaps and uncertainties,” Samet said.
Radiofrequency electromagnetic radiation is non-ionizing, meaning it doesn’t have enough energy to strip an electron from atoms or molecules. However, it is strong enough to excite them. Over a long enough period of time at sustained amounts of the right kind of exposure, it could fragment strands of DNA, which could potentially lead to certain forms of cancer, including glioma.
The IARC’s full report, titled “Volume 102: Non-Ionizing Radiation, Part II: Radiofrequency Electromagnetic Fields (includes mobile telephones)” will be released later this year.