A population-based case-control study of radiofrequency exposure in relation to childhood neoplasm.
Li CY, Liu CC, Chang YH, Chou LP, Ko MC. · 2012
View Original AbstractChildren living in areas with higher cell tower radiation showed 13% increased cancer risk in this large Taiwanese population study.
Plain English Summary
Taiwanese researchers analyzed cancer rates in over 2,600 children living near cell phone towers, comparing them to nearly 78,000 healthy children. They found that children living in areas with higher radiofrequency radiation from cell towers had a 13% increased risk of developing cancer overall. While the increased risk for specific cancers like leukemia and brain tumors wasn't statistically significant, the pattern suggests concern about long-term exposure to tower radiation.
Why This Matters
This large-scale population study from Taiwan adds important evidence to our understanding of childhood cancer risks from cell tower radiation. What makes this research particularly significant is its size and methodology - tracking over 80,000 children and using actual power density measurements from more than 71,000 cell towers over nearly a decade. The 13% increased cancer risk may seem modest, but when applied across entire populations of children living near towers, the public health implications become substantial. The study's authors acknowledge methodological limitations, yet the consistent pattern of elevated risk across cancer types mirrors findings from other international research. This reinforces the need for precautionary approaches to cell tower placement near schools and residential areas, especially given children's heightened vulnerability to radiation exposure during critical developmental periods.
Exposure Information
Specific exposure levels were not quantified in this study.
Study Details
The aim of this study is to investigate A population-based case-control study of radiofrequency exposure in relation to childhood neoplasm.
This population-based case-control study in Taiwan considered incident cases aged 15 years or less a...
A higher than median averaged APD (approximately 168 WYs/km(2)) was significantly associated with an...
Show BibTeX
@article{cy_2012_a_populationbased_casecontrol_study_2360,
author = {Li CY and Liu CC and Chang YH and Chou LP and Ko MC.},
title = {A population-based case-control study of radiofrequency exposure in relation to childhood neoplasm.},
year = {2012},
url = {https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22885353/},
}