What WHO review says about cellphone use and brain cancer

There is no connection between cellphone use and brain cancer, suggests a review into the potential risks of cellphone radiation commissioned by the World Health Organization and published this week. This includes people who spend all day on their smartphones, according to a report in The Washington Post.

The review involved 11 experts from 10 countries poring over several decades of scientific research to reach their conclusion. It has been a hot topic for health experts and regulators.

The experts looked at 5,000 studies published between 1994 and 2022, narrowing in on 63 for their final analysis.

In the fall of 2023, a regulator in France caused an uproar when it asked Apple to stop selling its iPhone 12 in that country, saying tests found that the device emits radiation levels exceeding European restrictions.

However, Apple disputed the findings, saying the device had been certified by international bodies and complied with regulations, the Associated Press reported.

The Agence Nationale des Fréquences (ANFR) said in a statement that it expected Apple to “to put an end to the noncompliance” and failure to act could result in a product recall.

The move gave new life to discussions about the potential risks of cellphone radiation.

In general, health experts say modern cellphones emit very low levels of radiation. They also say the way cellphones are often used — with headsets or for texting or social media — reduces exposure.

France’s digital minister said the iPhone 12’s radiation level was much lower than the level that scientific studies say could harm users. The ANFR acknowledged its tests didn’t reflect typical phone use.

The U.S. National Cancer Institute (NCI) says in a statement posted on its website in the spring of 2024 that many different kinds of studies have been carried out to investigate whether cellphone use is dangerous to human health.

“However, the evidence to date suggests that cellphone use does not cause brain or other kinds of cancer in humans,” says the statement.

Cellphones emit radiation that is “too low to damage DNA.”

By contrast, the NCI says, radiation such as the type from x-rays is high frequency and high energy and “can damage DNA (which) can cause changes to genes that may increase the risk of cancer.”

Investigators have studied whether the number of new cases of brain or central nervous system  cancers diagnosed each year has changed during the time that cellphone use increased dramatically, the NCI says.

In line with the WHO review, the NCI says those studies found that the incidence rate for adult and pediatric tumours were stable.

In a similar statement, also posted in the spring of 2024, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said: “Based on the evaluation of the currently available information, the FDA believes the weight of the scientific evidence does not support an increase in health risks from radio frequency exposure from cellphone use” at the radio frequency exposure limits set by the U.S. Federal Communications Commission.

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