Mortality by neoplasia and cellular telephone base stations in the Belo Horizonte municipality, Minas Gerais state, Brazil.
Dode AC, Leão MM, Tejo Fde A, Gomes AC, Dode DC, Dode MC, Moreira CW, Condessa VA, Albinatti C, Caiaffa WT. · 2011
View Original AbstractLiving within 500 meters of cell towers was linked to higher cancer death rates in this decade-long Brazilian population study.
Plain English Summary
Brazilian researchers analyzed cancer deaths in Belo Horizonte from 1996-2006 and found that people living within 500 meters of cell phone base stations had significantly higher cancer mortality rates (34.76 per 10,000 residents) compared to those living farther away. The study used official death records and mapped the locations of 856 cell towers, measuring radiofrequency radiation levels up to 12.4 V/m in areas with the highest cancer rates.
Why This Matters
This large-scale population study provides compelling evidence that living near cell towers correlates with increased cancer risk. The researchers documented 7,191 cancer deaths over a decade and found a clear spatial pattern - the closer people lived to base stations, the higher their cancer mortality rates. What makes this particularly significant is the exposure levels measured (up to 40.78 μW/cm²) are well within current safety guidelines, yet still associated with elevated cancer deaths. This adds to growing evidence that our current radiofrequency exposure standards may not adequately protect public health. The study's decade-long timeframe and use of official government health records strengthens its credibility, though like all observational studies, it cannot definitively prove causation.
Exposure Details
- Power Density
- 0.00004, 0.04078 µW/m²
- Electric Field
- 0.4, 12.4 V/m
Exposure Context
This study used 0.00004, 0.04078 µW/m² for radio frequency:
- 4Kx above the Building Biology guideline of 0.1 μW/m²
- 66.7x above the BioInitiative Report recommendation of 0.0006 μW/cm²
This study used 0.4, 12.4 V/m for electric fields:
- 1.3x above the Building Biology guideline of 0.3 V/m
Building Biology guidelines are practitioner-based limits from real-world assessments. BioInitiative Report recommendations are based on peer-reviewed science. Check Your Exposure to compare your own measurements.
Where This Falls on the Concern Scale
Study Details
The purpose of this research was to verify the existence of a spatial correlation between base station (BS) clusters and cases of deaths by neoplasia in the Belo Horizonte municipality, Minas Gerais state, Brazil, from 1996 to 2006 and to measure the human exposure levels to EMF where there is a major concentration of cellular telephone transmitter antennas.
A descriptive spatial analysis of the BSs and the cases of death by neoplasia identified in the muni...
The results show that approximately 856 BSs were installed through December 2006. Most (39.60%) of t...
Show BibTeX
@article{ac_2011_mortality_by_neoplasia_and_953,
author = {Dode AC and Leão MM and Tejo Fde A and Gomes AC and Dode DC and Dode MC and Moreira CW and Condessa VA and Albinatti C and Caiaffa WT.},
title = {Mortality by neoplasia and cellular telephone base stations in the Belo Horizonte municipality, Minas Gerais state, Brazil.},
year = {2011},
url = {https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21741680/},
}