- CHICAGO (Reuters) - There
does not appear to be an association between hand-held cellular telephone
use and brain cancer, though more research needs to be done about the impact
of long-term use, according to a study published (on) Tuesday.
-
- The study, done by the American Health Foundation, was
funded in part by a research group established by the cellular
-
- telephone industry which put more than $28 million into
a blind escrow account for the group to finance research after cancer fears
were raised during the last decade.
-
- The report looked at 469 men and women aged 18 to 80
who had primary brain cancer and compared them with 422 people who did
not have the malignancy, quizzing both groups about hand-held cellular
telephone use.
-
- "The ... study shows no effect with short-term exposure
to cellular telephones that operate on (primarily) analog signals,"
concluded the report published in this week's Journal of the American Medical
Association (JAMA).
-
- "Further studies are needed to account for longer
induction periods, especially for slow-growing tumors. The radio frequency
fields emitted from digital cellular telephones might have different effects
on biological tissue than analog telephones, and studies are under way
in several European countries that use primarily digital telecommunication
networks," it added.
-
- The New England Journal of Medicine lifted a Jan. 11
embargo on its own study of cellular phone use and brain cancer on Wednesday
after the JAMA report became public. That study also found there was no
apparent data to support the theory that hand-held cellular phone use caused
brain tumors.
-
- The Journal's authors, who used 782 patients in hospitals
in Arizona, Pennsylvania and Massachusetts, also called for more studies
to evaluate the risks among long-term, heavy cell telephone users.
-
- The JAMA study was conducted from 1994 to 1998 after
suggestions were made that the proximity of the antenna to the side of
the head might be exposing the brain to potentially dangerous doses of
radio frequency signals. In recent years earplug and mouthpiece attachments
which allow the user to keep the telephone receiver away from the head
have become popular, in part because of health concerns.
-
- "We found that regardless of how frequently the
phones were used per month or how many years the phones were used, there
wasn't any relationship with the development of brain cancer," said
Joshua Muscat, the study's chief author, in a separate statement released
by the medical association.
-
- "Our results suggest that the use of cell phones
are not related to the incidence of brain cancer," he added. "But
we need to keep in mind that cell phones have only been around for a few
years, and so most people who have used cell phones have them on an average
for about two or three years. We need to keep in mind that there might
be unknown effects associated with longer usage, and so that needs to be
studied in the future."
-
- Cellular telephones were introduced in the United States
in 1984 but their usage there and in other countries boomed during the
'90s.
-
- The brain cancer patients interviewed in the study were
at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York University Medical
Center, and Columbia Presbyterian Hospital in New York; Rhode Island Hospital
in Providence; and Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston.
-
- The study said that while cellular telephone use has
been suspected as a risk factor for brain cancer, the actual causes of
the disease remain poorly understood.
-
- In the study released Tuesday those surveyed were asked
if they had ever used a hand-held cellular telephone on a regular basis,
that being defined as having had a subscription to a service.
-
-
-
- Comment
-
- From Bob Barnes <bbarnes@fwi.com 12-21-00
-
- Jeff -
-
- Thought I'd pass this along for what it's worth.
-
- From Charles Willer Date 12-20-00
-
- This is from my sales manager at Streaming magazine.
She rushed to the East coast this week because of her best friend having
emergency surgery because of a brain tumor. She sends this note.
-
- FYI yesterday a study was published saying there is no
conclusive evidence that cell phones will cause brain damage. It was underwritten
by an cell phone industry association.
-
- Better to be safe. We're recommending headsets.
-
- Eric
-
- --- Original Message ---
-
- From Joanne Callow Date 12-20-00 To Eric Rhoads
-
- Eric,
-
- While visiting my friend who underwent brain surgery,
I spoke with her neurosurgeon and wanted to alert those I know about he
said.
-
- In recent years, he has seen an increase in the type
of tumor my friend has and the common denominator is extensive cell phone
use - he defined extensive use as 20 times per day or more.
-
- Granted, this is not published, proven medical fact -
but I have heard rumblings of this.
-
- I don't know how much you use your cell phone or how
much your staff may use them, but I thought it worthwhile to share the
medical observation that I was privy to.
-
- Joanne
-
- _____
-
- From Charles Willer
-
- I heartily agree.
-
- In fact, where in the hell did we ever get the idea that
a radio transmitter and receiver work well INSIDE a Faraday Box (albeit
a leaky one), next to a mass of dense organic matter???
-
- My ham radio works GREAT with only 1/10 watt because
I have the antenna OUTSIDE, on a great ground plane, and the headphone
jack is plugged into a 8-watt amplified speaker that plugs into my cigarette
lighter jack.
-
- This makes my 4 little AA cells last a whole WEEK before
recharging, and there is practically NO RF around my body.
-
- MainPage
http://www.rense.com
-
-
-
- This
Site Served by TheHostPros
|