Note: This study found no significant biological effects under its experimental conditions. We include all studies for scientific completeness.
Long-term mobile phone use and the risk of vestibular schwannoma: a danish nationwide cohort study
No Effects Found
Authors not listed · 2011
Massive 11-year Danish study of 2.9 million people found no increased vestibular schwannoma risk from long-term mobile phone use.
Plain English Summary
Summary written for general audiences
Danish researchers followed 2.9 million people for over a decade to study whether long-term mobile phone use increases the risk of vestibular schwannoma, a type of brain tumor that grows near the ear. They found no increased risk even among users with 11+ years of mobile phone subscriptions. The study also found no pattern of tumors occurring more often on the side of the head where people typically hold their phones.
Cite This Study
Unknown (2011). Long-term mobile phone use and the risk of vestibular schwannoma: a danish nationwide cohort study.
Show BibTeX
@article{long_term_mobile_phone_use_and_the_risk_of_vestibular_schwannoma_a_danish_nationwide_cohort_study_ce723,
author = {Unknown},
title = {Long-term mobile phone use and the risk of vestibular schwannoma: a danish nationwide cohort study},
year = {2011},
doi = {10.1093/aje/kwr112},
}Quick Questions About This Study
No. The Danish study found men with 11+ years of mobile phone subscriptions had a relative risk of 0.87, meaning slightly lower risk than non-users. No cases occurred in long-term female subscribers versus 1.6 expected cases.
No. Despite most Danish participants holding phones to their right ear, vestibular schwannomas did not occur more frequently on the right side of the head, contradicting what would be expected if phones caused these tumors.
No. Vestibular schwannomas in long-term male mobile phone subscribers were not larger than expected, which contradicts the theory that phone radiation might accelerate tumor growth or make tumors more aggressive.
Vestibular schwannomas grow in the exact brain region where mobile phone radiofrequency energy is most concentrated during calls. This makes them a logical target for investigating potential mobile phone health effects.
The study included 2.9 million Danish adults, making it one of the largest investigations into mobile phone use and brain tumor risk ever conducted. Participants were followed from 1995 through 2006.