Certain studies have shown a higher incidence of certain cancers, tumours and other illnesses in persons living or working close to mobile phone masts. It has been reported by numerous sources that this is the case, including mainstream journalistic sources such as the Times.
However, a recent study published in the British Medical Journal, led by Professor Paul Elliott of Imperial College London, of almost 7000 under fives found no link between Childhood Tumours and the radiation emitting base stations which some people blame for a spate of illnesses.
The study compared 1,397 young children with leukaemia or a tumour in the brain or central nervous system with 5,588 others with the same birth dates, selected at random, as controls.
The study showed that the children were no more likely to have lived close to a mast at birth than their healthy peers.
We could not define the random element of the sample. We cannot confirm whether any of the children subsequently moved home or went to a school or playgroup or other area where potential electro-magnetic waves, microwaves or other similar factors could influence the findings. No information appears regarding where the mothers were working or spending their time when not at home throughout their pregnancy. The research dates were set for children born between 1999 and 2001. Many more phone masts have been constructed since then.
Although Dr John Bithell from the Childhood Cancer Research Group at Oxford University said parents should be reassured, the potential shortcomings in the research will leave many extremely cynical as to the study’s validity.
To locate whether there is a mobile phone mast close to your home, or near a home which you are thinking of purchasing, involves considerable research. Will it be required as part of the local authority enquiries contained within a property search prior to conveyance?
Many (but not all) of the UK’s mobile mast base stations are on the Sitefinder website. This site is incomplete as for some reason the mobile phone companies are somewhat reticent about all this information being in the public domain and have gone to court to protect their rights! Sitefinder has a search facility available to make searching quick and easy. Go to the Sitefinder website here. http://www.sitefinder.ofcom.org.uk/
30th June 2010