Latest study on cell phones and cancer finds another weak association

Artotem

Over the years, various governments around the world have attempted to enact regulations that warn cell phone users of the supposed risks of heavy cell phone use. There's just one problem with that: medical authorities have had a very hard time determining what those risks are.

It's not for lack of trying. Various small studies have found hints of an association between cell phone use and specific cancers. But large meta-analyses and extended cohort studies have come up empty, suggesting that either the small studies produced spurious results or that only a small subset of the cell phone using population is at risk. Without a larger, definitive study, it's simply impossible to tell.

But that hasn't stopped a steady flow of smaller studies from continuing to retread well-worn ground—or journalists from giving these limited studies more attention than they deserve. In the latest example, the AFP picked up a French study that shows a potential elevated risk of cancer from high levels of cell phone use. But the study has the usual collection of limitations, and it has some details that run counter to some of the past studies that found elevated cancer risk.