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'No cancer from cellphones'
24/03/2007 21:20 - (SA)
New York - Cellphone use does not appear
to be associated with an increased risk of glioma - the most
common type of brain tumour, according to a new study.
The story
may be different, however, for intense use of cellphones over
many years.
"Public concern has been expressed about the possible
adverse health effects of mobile telephones, mainly related to
(brain) tumours," Dr Anna Lahkola, of the Radiation and Nuclear
Safety Authority, Helsinki, and colleagues explain in the
International Journal of Cancer.
The researchers examined the relationship between mobile
phone use and risk of glioma by studying 1 521 glioma patients
and 3 301 controls.
The vast majority of both groups reported using cellphones.
Overall, 92% of glioma patients and 94%
of controls reported ever using a mobile phone.
Overall, there was no evidence of increased glioma risk
related to regular mobile phone use.
There were no significant associations observed with
duration of use, years since first use, cumulative number of
calls, or cumulative hours of use.
No increased glioma risk was observed when analog and
digital phones were analysed separately.
There was, however, a trend toward increased risk of glioma
in people who used a cellphone for more than 10 years
exclusively on one side of the head, which was on the same side
as the tumour.
The association reached "borderline statistical
significance."
"This may be due either to chance or causal effect or
information bias, i.e., over-reporting of mobile phone use on
the affected side by the cases with brain tumours," the
investigators comment. - International Journal of Cancer.
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