Cell Phones now, and 'why me'?

A couple of days ago, a call to the surgical ward at the hospital ... the familiar scene - a patient (and in this case, friend) had just learned that she had a very serious cancer. It was discovered after what was thought to be a regular gall bladder operation.... She was ‘healthy’ .. Had never smoked, been a drinker, was in good shape and all the rest. The inevitable question, ‘why me?’ is hidden on the lips of family, friends, and of course, the patient. The fact is that we don’t have an answer to this question, except in obvious cases. We’ve long been concerned about environmental factors - especially in agrarian parts of the country. And now, once more, we have another news story to reinforce the list - cellphones. This past week, Ronald Herberman, the director of the U of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute, issued a warning to his faculty and staff about limiting cellphone use because of the possible risk of cancer. He said that "… at the heart of my concern is that we shouldn't wait for a definitive study to come out, but err on the side of being safe rather than sorry later." Dr. Herberman's advice once again raised concern among many cellphone users and especially parents. In the memo he sent to about 3,000 faculty and staff last Wednesday, he says children should use cellphones only for emergencies because their brains are still developing. The issue that concerns some scientists - though nowhere near a consensus - is electromagnetic radiation, especially its possible effects on children. We know that children and adults are exposed to electric and magnetic fields (EMF) from a variety of sources every day. For example, coffee makers, hair dryers, computers, household wires and high voltage power lines emit both electric and magnetic fields. To date, following more than 25 years of research, scientific evidence has not found a consistent relationship between exposure to EMF and cancer risk in adults. However, some research studies have found a relationship between EMF exposure and childhood leukemia, and even the scientific evidence looking at the risk of childhood leukemia and exposure to EMF is inconsistent. Some studies show an increase in risk – particularly when the EMF level is high – while others show no increase in risk. As an amateur in this research area, it just seems to me that we should err on the side of caution until definitive results are forthcoming. Certainly, it appears that there are limitations to current research. To date, in my country, Health Canada suggests that taking special precautions is not necessary. What is obvious, is that more and smarter research is necessary between environmental factors and certain cancers. At the end of August, I’ll be at the World Cancer Congress … and looking for any current research statements concerning cellphone or electronic devices and cancer potential. For now, it adds to the list of ‘why me’ or, as another ‘healthy’ friend and colleague put it as he was dying of cancer … "why not me"?