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Cellular telephone use and the risk of brain tumors: update of the UK Million Women Study

Abstract:

Background: The ongoing debate of whether use of cellular telephones increases the risk of developing a brain tumor was recently fueled by the launch of the fifth generation of wireless technologies. Here, we update follow-up of a large-scale prospective study on the association between cellular telephone use and brain tumors.

Methods: During 1996-2001, 1.3 million women born in 1935-1950 were recruited into the study. Questions on cellular telephone use were first asked in median year 2001 and again in median year 2011. All study participants were followed via record linkage to National Health Services databases on deaths and cancer registrations (including nonmalignant brain tumors).

Results: During 14 years follow-up of 776 156 women who completed the 2001 questionnaire, a total of 3268 incident brain tumors were registered. Adjusted relative risks for ever vs never cellular telephone use were 0.97 (95% confidence interval = 0.90 to 1.04) for all brain tumors, 0.89 (95% confidence interval = 0.80 to 0.99) for glioma, and not statistically significantly different to 1.0 for meningioma, pituitary tumors, and acoustic neuroma. Compared with never-users, no statistically significant associations were found, overall or by tumor subtype, for daily cellular telephone use or for having used cellular telephones for at least 10 years. Taking use in 2011 as baseline, there were no statistically significant associations with talking for at least 20 minutes per week or with at least 10 years use. For gliomas occurring in the temporal and parietal lobes, the parts of the brain most likely to be exposed to radiofrequency electromagnetic fields from cellular telephones, relative risks were slightly below 1.0.

Conclusion: Our findings support the accumulating evidence that cellular telephone use under usual conditions does not increase brain tumor incidence.

Publication status:
Published
Peer review status:
Peer reviewed

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Files:
Publisher copy:
10.1093/jnci/djac042

Authors


More by this author
Institution:
University of Oxford
Division:
MSD
Department:
Nuffield Department of Population Health
Sub department:
Cancer Epidemiology Unit
Role:
Author
ORCID:
0000-0002-0561-4904
More by this author
Institution:
University of Oxford
Division:
MSD
Department:
Nuffield Department of Population Health
Sub department:
Cancer Epidemiology Unit
Role:
Author
ORCID:
0000-0003-3035-4697
More by this author
Institution:
University of Oxford
Division:
MSD
Department:
Nuffield Department of Population Health
Sub department:
Cancer Epidemiology Unit
Role:
Author
ORCID:
0000-0002-6078-9117
More by this author
Institution:
University of Oxford
Division:
MSD
Department:
Nuffield Department of Population Health
Sub department:
Cancer Epidemiology Unit
Role:
Author
ORCID:
0000-0002-3581-9361

Contributors


Publisher:
Oxford University Press
Journal:
Journal of the National Cancer Institute More from this journal
Volume:
114
Issue:
5
Pages:
704-711
Publication date:
2022-03-29
Acceptance date:
2022-01-25
DOI:
EISSN:
1460-2105
ISSN:
0027-8874
Pmid:
35350069


Language:
English
Keywords:
Pubs id:
1250692
Local pid:
pubs:1250692
Deposit date:
2023-02-01

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