Is your mobile phone REALLY killing your brain?
FATAL brain cancer is on the rise and could be caused by radiation from mobiles. Or not. Tory Shepherd investigates.
By Tory Shepherd of The Punch
NewsComAuMay 7, 20129:56am
Dr Charles Teo, one of Australia's leading brain surgeons. Picture: Alan PrykeSource:The Australian
FATAL brain cancer is on the rise and could be caused by radiation from mobile phones, which would mean we're heading for devastation "on a scale never before witnessed in history".
Or there may be nothing to worry about.
Right now, no one knows for sure – and Dr Charlie Teo, one of Australia's top neurosurgeons, says some people are too afraid to find out because of the enormous consequences.
Some studies have found there is no link between mobiles and brain cancer. Others have found a link. Dr Teo told News.com.au that studies that found no link were usually at least partly funded by telecommunications companies – and that the telcos have in the past refused to release records of phone usage that would allow a more robust study to be done.
The largest study done, the international and partly telco-funded Interphone study, found phones were safe – unless you are a "heavy user", or a child (children were not included in the study).
"(Brain cancer) is a terrible disease, it's the most lethal cancer known to mankind. It kills young people and it appears to be affecting more people than it did ten years ago. I believe there may be a link between mobile phones and brain cancer," Dr Teo said.
"Finding a definite link would be devastating – and the telecommunications companies are too afraid to find out."
Dr Teo – whose opinion is published in full on The Punch today – thinks we need to find out for sure, and soon.
"Why wait until half the world's population has brain cancer?" he asked.
He also went to great pains to emphasise that there may not be a link; that he is not a radiation expert, and that he is not a zealot who wants to get rid of mobile phones. But he has looked at all the available evidence, at least a third of his patients' tumours are in the area of the brain near the ear, and he wants to find out what is going on.
The Cancer Council NSW also says more research is always good, but they add that in general people shouldn't get too uptight. Chief executive officer Dr Andrew Penman said it was "difficult to prove that mobile phones cause cancer but even more difficult to prove they don't cause cancer".
He says the "real world" shows that if there was any effect from phones it would be "very small".
Dr Penman says any rise in brain cancer incidences are in older people, and that because large studies such as the Interphone study have not found a link there is no need for people to panic.
"It's fine to be aware of the debate, but as the evidence has accumulated the level of alarm and concern … that prompted warnings about use in young children … has abated," he said.
"People tend to cast around for exotic causes of cancer they can control – but the big thing is tobacco, lack of exercise, obesity, sun exposure, the use of hormone replacement therapy. We know those things have a big effect, and you can actually do something about those."
Dr Penman says there is no need for people to change their behaviour.
Dr Teo says he personally minimises his usage and always uses a hands-free kit.
The World Health Organisation says the non-ionising radiation emitted by phones is possibly carcinogenic and recommends hands-free or texting.
And in the instructions for iPhones and Blackberries lurks a warning to keep phones slightly away from your body.
Australian Mobile Telecommunications Association Chief Executive Officer Chris Althaus said AMTA rejected "Dr Teo's baseless claims of alleged improper industry influence over research into mobile phone health and safety".
He said while they respected his work and acknowledged his right to express his opinion, expert opinion and the weight of evidence showed there were no adverse health effects from mobile phone use.
He said the industry was committed to supporting expert research to help consumers make informed choices, that funding was provided under strict protocols – and that sometimes governments made funding conditional on some funds coming from industry.
Mr Althaus also said the industry had cooperated fully with researchers.
Originally published asIs your mobile phone REALLY killing your brain?
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