WHO study confirms cell phone radiation causes cancerous tumours in animals
A groundbreaking review commissioned by the World Health Organization (WHO) has concluded with high certainty that cell phone radiation causes cancer in animals, reigniting a decades-long debate over the safety of wireless technology.
Published April 25 in Environment International, the study analysed 52 animal experiments and found strong evidence linking radiofrequency electromagnetic fields (RF-EMF) to tumours in the nerve and brain – the same types observed in human cell phone users. The WHO-backed review identified high certainty evidence that RF-EMF exposure increases the risk of gliomas (aggressive brain tumours) and malignant schwannomas (rare nerve tumours) in animals that end up being detected in the heart. It also found moderate certainty for elevated risks of liver and adrenal gland cancers.
Glioblastomas, the deadliest brain cancers, have been linked to long-term phone use in multiple studies. Schwannomas, though usually benign, can cause hearing loss and neurological damage.
In 2011, the WHO’s International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classified RF-EMF as a Group 2B “possible” human carcinogen, citing limited animal data. Since then, multiple large-scale studies – including those by the Collegium Ramazzini – have reinforced the cancer link.
Meanwhile, the International Commission on the Biological Effects of EMF – a coalition of 267 scientists from 45 countries – is urging the WHO to reclassify RF-EMF as a Group 1 “known” carcinogen. They argue current limits are “dangerously outdated” and fail to account for modern usage patterns, like 5G networks and constant device proximity.
The results of the April study align with earlier findings from the U.S. National Toxicology Program’s $30 million study, which in 2018 reported “clear evidence” of heart tumours in rats exposed to cell phone radiation.
Despite mounting evidence, nearly 2,500 pages of related U.S. government research remain undisclosed, and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has yet to explain why the program was abruptly discontinued. Critics argue this secrecy underscores a pattern of regulatory negligence.
Global safety standards still assume RF radiation only harms via heating
Global safety standards, largely unchanged since the 1990s, still assume wireless radiation is harmless unless it heats tissue. The U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC), which hasn’t updated its RF exposure limits since 1996, was ordered by a federal court in 2021 to justify its outdated standards – a mandate it has ignored.
“The preponderance of research since 1996 shows harm from low-level, long-term exposure,” said Dr. Joel Moskowitz of the University of California, Berkeley, a critic of lax regulations. Former NIH toxicologist Dr. Ron Melnick shared his view.
“The assumption that RF radiation only harms via heating is dead wrong,” said Melnick. “Governments need to act before this becomes a full-blown public health crisis.”
Practical steps – like using speakerphone, wired headsets, and keeping phones away from the body – can reduce exposure. But experts stress that personal precautions are no substitute for stricter regulations.
The WHO study marks a turning point in the wireless safety debate, exposing a glaring gap between scientific evidence and policy inaction. With global cell phone use surpassing seven billion subscriptions, the stakes couldn’t be higher.
yogaesoteric
May 19, 2025