A study on U.K. women recently published in the
Journal of the National Cancer Institute has concluded cell phone use did not increase cancer risk. Medscape news stated that., “These results support the accumulating evidence that mobile phone use under usual conditions does not increase brain tumor risk,” said study author Kirstin Pirie, MSc, from the Cancer Epidemiology Unit at Oxford Population Health, United Kingdom, in statement.”
When a parent asked the Oxford scientists about the study that supposedly showed no cell phone cancer link in order to share the information with her community, she got the following response from the Oxford scientist. The parent asked Oxford scientist Kirstin Pirie what was meant by “usual” cell phone use?
“The participants in this study were not particularly heavy users of mobile phones, as only 18% of phone-users reported talking on a mobile phone for 30 minutes or more each week. As such, we were unable to assess the risks associated with considerably greater levels of exposure.”
The parents sent the email chain to Theodora Scarato, Executive Director of Environmental Health Trust and we are sharing it with the public to ensure they are aware that the “million” woman study did not consider cell phone use “considerably greater” than 30 minutes or more a week.
———- Forwarded message ———
From:
Kirstin Pirie <
kirstin.pirie@ndph.ox.ac.uk>
Date: Mon, Apr 4, 2022 at 12:45 PM
Subject: RE: question on your study
Dear Laura,
Thank you for your email. Please find my answers to your questions below.
1. You stated to Medscape News that “These results support the accumulating evidence that mobile phone use under usual conditions does not increase brain tumor risk,” Can you please tell me what you mean. What is “usual conditions?” How many hours a day? Please define “usual.”
The participants in this study were not particularly heavy users of mobile phones, as only 18% of phone-users reported talking on a mobile phone for 30 minutes or more each week. As such, we were unable to assess the risks associated with considerably greater levels of exposure.
2. You said “Questions on cellular telephone use were first asked in median year 2001 and again in median year 2011 ” Were women asked to complete the questionnaire each year like 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013? or just once in that time period? After that survey, were they ever asked again?
Study participants are resurveyed approximately every 3-5 years, but questions on mobile phone use were only included on two of these questionnaires (ie, the questionnaires completed in median years 2001 and 2011). The questionnaire in median year 2001 was completed just once per woman, at some point between 1999 and 2005 (as it can take a long time to post out and process questionnaires for over 1 million women). Similarly, women who completed the questionnaire in median year 2011 did so just once, between 2009 and 2013.
I hope that this helps. Best wishes, Kirstin
Kirstin Pirie
Oxford Population Health (Nuffield Department of Population Health, University of Oxford)
E: kirstin.pirie@ndph.ox.ac.uk | W: www.ndph.ox.ac.uk
Original Email
Dear Dr. Pirie,
I am covering this issue for our local community group. I was reading your study Cellular Telephone Use and the Risk of Brain Tumors: Update of the UK Million Women Study
1. You stated to Medscape News that “These results support the accumulating evidence that mobile phone use under usual conditions does not increase brain tumor risk,” Can you please tell me what you mean. What is “usual conditions?” How many hours a day? Please define “usual.”
2. You said “Questions on cellular telephone use were first asked in median year 2001 and again in median year 2011 ” Were women asked to complete the questionnaire each year like 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013? or just once in that time period? After that survey, were they ever asked again?
Thanks so much for your help with this,
L S
