Biggest Study Ever Reports on Mobiles and Brain Cancer

Hong Kong, May 16, 2010 (ots/PRNewswire) - The International Journal of
Epidemiology today published a combined data analysis from a multi
national population-based case-control study of glioma and
meningioma, the most common types of brain tumour. This is the first
in a series of combined data analyses of head and neck tumours
published as part of the internationally coordinated INTERPHONE
project.

The authors reported the following conclusion:

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. The possible effects of long-term
heavy use of mobile phones require further investigation.

In the press release accompanying the release of the paper, Dr
Christopher Wild, Director of the International Agency for Research
on Cancer (IARC) said: "An increased risk of brain cancer is not
established from the data from Interphone. However, observations at
the highest level of cumulative call time and the changing patterns
of mobile phone use since the period studied by Interphone,
particularly in young people, mean that further investigation of
mobile phone use and brain cancer risk is merited."

Commenting on the study, Michael Milligan, Secretary General of
the Mobile Manufacturers Forum said "The INTERPHONE project is the
biggest study of its kind ever undertaken in this field and provides
significant further reassurance about the safety of mobile phones.
The overall analysis is consistent with previous studies and the
significant body of research, reporting no increased health risk from
using mobile phones."

He continued "The absence of increased health risks include long
term mobile phone use for more than 10 years. The authors make it
clear that the data was insufficient for a clear interpretation of
possible risk from self-reported heavy use due to a number of
possible errors or biases. For example, the paper notes that there is
evidence that people diagnosed with a brain tumour over-reported
their past mobile phone use and that 'recall bias-like this may be
more likely if subjects perceive that mobile phone use is associated
with brain tumours, as has been widely speculated in the media."

"Mobile phone users can take comfort in the fact that there is
already a substantial body of scientific evidence on the long-tem use
of mobile phones through whole-of-life animal studies, which have
found no link between long-term exposure to radiofrequency and health
impacts," added Mr Milligan.

The INTERPHONE results now need to be considered by independent
health authorities, such as the World Health Organization (WHO) and
other expert groups to assess their significance, if any, to people's
health.

Mr Milligan added "The mobile industry supports the need for
ongoing research. In fact, a number of longer-term studies are
already underway such as the COSMOS study, which will follow the
health of 250,000 European mobile users for 20-30 years, and several
studies are now looking at children and teenagers, including the
international MOBI-kids and CEFALO studies and the Australian
MoRPhEUS project."

Although INTERPHONE is a large and important study, it must be
viewed in context as only one of many studies that will be used in
the overall cancer-risk assessment to be undertaken by IARC in 2011.

The mobile phone industry takes all questions regarding the
safety of mobile phones seriously and has a strong commitment to
supporting ongoing scientific research such as the way it supported
the INTERPHONE project.

Notes for editors:

This study is part of the combined analysis of the national data
collected as part of the 13 country INTERPHONE project, coordinated
by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC).

The MMF provided partial funding for the INTERPHONE project in
conjunction with the GSM Association, the European Commission and
many national research funding bodies. Funding was provided in such a
manner as to ensure the full scientific independence of the study and
the terms of the funding agreement are publicly available at
http://www.iarc.fr/en/research-groups/RAD/RCAd.html

Tumours of the nervous system are rare and account for less than
2% of all malignancies (about 175,000 cases per year worldwide).
Gliomas are a type of brain tumour arising in cells of the brain and
are diagnosed each year at 6-8 per 100,000 people in the west.
Meningiomas arise from cells that make up the covering around the
brain and are even rarer, affecting fewer than 2 per 100,000 people.

Media enquiries:

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Key Quotes from the paper, which can be downloaded from:
http://ije.oxfordjournals.org/

"For meningioma ...we conclude that INTERPHONE finds no signs of
an increased risk of meningioma among users of mobile telephones."

"Still, the evidence for an increased risk of glioma among the
highest users was inconclusive, as the increase could be due to one
or more of the possible sources of error discussed below."

"As noted earlier, there is evidence that cases tended to
overestimate their past exposure more than controls did."

"Our results are consistent with most of the research published
to date."

"Much biological research has been done in recent years on
possible biological effects of RF fields. This work covers in vitro
and in vivo exposure, alone and in combination with other physical or
chemical agents, and has found no evidence that RF fields are
carcinogenic in laboratory rodents or cause DNA damage in cells in
culture"

ots Originaltext: Mobile Manufacturers Forum
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