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increasing distance from the source. The so-called “cordless phones,” which
have a base unit connected to the telephone wiring in a house, typically
operate at far lower power levels, and thus produce RF exposures far below
the FCC safety limits.
4. What are the results of the research done already?
The research done thus far has produced conflicting results, and many studies
have suffered from flaws in their research methods. Animal experiments
investigating the effects of Radio Frequency energy (RF) exposures characteristic
of wireless phones have yielded conflicting results that often cannot be repeated
in other laboratories. A few animal studies, however, have suggested that low
levels of RF could accelerate the development of cancer in laboratory animals.
However, many of the studies that showed increased tumor development used
animals that had been genetically engineered or treated with cancer-causing
chemicals so as to be pre-disposed to develop cancer in the absence of RF
exposure. Other studies exposed the animals to RF for up to 22 hours per day.
These conditions are not similar to the conditions under which people use
wireless phones, so we don’t know with certainty what the results of such studies
mean for human health. Three large epidemiology studies have been published
since December 2000. Between them, the studies investigated any possible
association between the use of wireless phones and primary brain cancer,
glioma, meningioma, or acoustic neuroma, tumors of the brain or salivary
gland, leukemia, or other cancers. None of the studies demonstrated the
existence of any harmful health effects from wireless phone RF exposures.
However, none of the studies can answer questions about long-term exposures,
since the average period of phone use in these studies was around three years.
5. What research is needed to decide whether RF exposure from
wireless phones poses a health risk?
A combination of laboratory studies and epidemiological studies of people
actually using wireless phones would provide some of the data that are needed.
Lifetime animal exposure studies could be completed in a few years. However,
very large numbers of animals would be needed to provide reliable proof of a
cancer promoting effect if one exists. Epidemiological studies can provide data
that is directly applicable to human populations, but 10 or more years follow-up
may be needed to provide answers about some health effects, such as cancer.