Cell Phones and Brain Tumors
Cell Phones and Brain Tumors
Written by Dr. Daniel J. Murphy D.C., D.A.B.C.O.
TAC, Research , Volume 32, Issue 2
Published:
TITLE: Cell phones and brain tumors: A review including
the long-term epidemiologic data
CITATION: Surgical Neurology, September 2009; 72; pp.
205–215
AUTHORS: Vini G. Khurana, Ph.D., F.R.A.C.S., Charles
Teo, M.B.B.S., F.R.A.C.S., Michael Kundi, Ph.D.,
Lennart Hardell, M.D., Ph.D., Michael Carlberg, M.S.
TITLE: Cell phones and brain tumors: A review including
the long-term epidemiologic data
CITATION: Surgical Neurology, September 2009; 72; pp.
205–215
AUTHORS: Vini G. Khurana, Ph.D., F.R.A.C.S., Charles
Teo, M.B.B.S., F.R.A.C.S., Michael Kundi, Ph.D.,
Lennart Hardell, M.D., Ph.D., Michael Carlberg, M.S.
Key Points from Dr. Dan Murphy
1. This article has 68 references. An editorial comment
ascribed to this study indicates that it is "the most
comprehensive study and analysis to date of this topic."
2. These authors found 11 long-term studies in the
PubMed database of participants using cell phones for
≥10 years.
3. "The results indicate that using a cell phone for ≥10
years approximately doubles the risk of being diagnosed
with a brain tumor on the same ("ipsilateral") side of
the head as that preferred for cell phone use."
4. "The authors conclude that there is adequate
epidemiologic evidence to suggest a link between
prolonged cell phone usage and the development of an
ipsilateral brain tumor."
5. The power [and danger] generated by a cell phone will
vary according to the amount of interference with the
signal. Higher power is required when using a cell phone
in a moving vehicle, within a building, or in an
elevator.
6. "The output power [and danger] of the phone is
generally set to the highest level during ‘handovers’
between networked base stations as a user moves from one
geographic area to another or when signal interference
is greatest."
7. Evidence presented suggests that cordless phones are
also not safe.
8. Cell phones emit electromagnetic radiation only
during calls.
9. Cell phone systems have been presumed to be safe
because their longer wavelengths are nonionizing,
lacking sufficient energy to break intermolecular bonds.
Therefore, their increased cancer risk is not as a
consequence of ionization.
10. "Science Magazine has recently acknowledged that
there are several peer-reviewed studies from
laboratories in at least 7 countries, including the
United States, showing that cell phone or similar
low-intensity electromagnetic fields can (contrary to
expectations of non-ionizing sources) break DNA or
modulate it structurally."
11."Irrespective of the type of phone, exposure is
highest on the side of the head against which the cell
phone is held and appears to be even higher in children
owing to thinner scalps and skulls, increased water
content of their brain, and lower brain volume."
12."Many independent laboratory investigations have
suggested adverse biologic effects of cell phone
radiation." (12 references)
13.The authors present evidence that cell phones can be
DNA-damaging as a consequence of "non-thermal
interaction between incoming microwaves and exquisitely
sensitive oscillatory electrical processes found in
living tissues." "This is akin to the reception of a
clock radio being susceptible to interference from a
nearby cell phone." This "oscillatory similitude may
lead to genetic or epigenetic damage through increased
local production of reactive oxygen species or free
radicals." [Wow!]
14."There are several hundred studies that support the
existence of low-intensity, non-thermal effects of cell
phone radiation on biological systems. The consequences
are mostly adverse: DNA single- and double-strand
damage, changes in gene transcription, changes in
protein folding, heat shock protein generation,
production of free radicals, and effects on the immune
system."
15."Taken together, the long-term epidemiologic data
suggest an increased risk of being diagnosed with an
ipsilateral brain tumor related to cell phone usage of
10 years or more."
16.There are also "significantly elevated odds for the
development of ipsilateral parotid gland tumors among
heavy cell phone users."
17.The Central Brain Tumor Registry of the United States
maintains comprehensive tumor incidence rates in the
USA, and their data shows an increase in incidence of
brain tumors of about 36% in less than a decade. This
increase is not explained by an aging population
(because these figures were age-adjusted) or by better
detection.
18."The authors believe that the aforementioned
epidemiologic and laboratory findings underscore the
need for reassessment by governments worldwide of cell
phone and also most radiation exposure standards and the
usage and deployment of this technology. If the
epidemiologic data continue to be confirmed then, in the
absence of appropriate and timely intervention and given
the increasing global dependence on cell phone
technology, especially among the young generation, it is
likely that neurosurgeons will see increasing numbers of
primary brain tumors, both benign and malignant."
Dr. Dan Murphy graduated magna cum laude from Western
States Chiropractic College in 1978. He received
Diplomat status in Chiropractic Orthopedics in 1986.
Since 1982, Dr. Murphy has served part-time as
undergraduate faculty at Life Chiropractic College West,
currently teaching classes to seniors in the management
of spinal disorders. He has taught more than 2000
postgraduate continuing education seminars. Dr. Murphy
is a contributing author to both editions of the book
Motor Vehicle Collision Injuries and to the book
Pediatric Chiropractic. Hundreds of detailed Article
Reviews, pertinent to chiropractors and their patients,
are available at Dr. Murphy’s web page,
www.danmurphydc.com.
