A New Zealand study has concluded that cellphone use does not increase the risk of brain tumours, Radio New Zealand reports.
Brain cancer drop despite mobile phone use http://t.co/6axzlNJx9m
— RNZ News (@rnz_news) February 25, 2015
Researchers from the University of Auckland said the number of brain tumour diagnoses in the country has actually dropped.
Researchers examined over 4,000 medical records held by the New Zealand Cancer Registry, of people who'd been diagnosed with brain cancers between 1995 and 2010.
If there was a link between mobile phone use and tumours developing, they expected to see an increase in tumours, especially with diagnostic improvements.
Instead, for people aged between 10 and 69, there was an average drop of almost 1 percent a year.
Lead researcher Professor Mark Elwood said they have no idea what was behind the small decrease.
“We would have to ask whether there's been any change in the classification or the recording of these tumours. Once we could set that aside, then it would raise questions whether there were any influences which might in some way reduce the risk of brain cancers,” he said.
Professor Elwood said the results added to the body of evidence that countered the belief that there was an increased cancer risk for mobile phone users, but he said it did not necessarily mean there was no risk.
“No study can completely rule out anything, we can't prove a negative. But it's one more piece of evidence which goes into the overall issue.”
