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(Database last updated on Mar 27, 2024)
| ID Number | 357 | |
| Study Type | Epidemiology | |
| Model | Studies of RF exposure, including mobile phone emissions, of adults and children and risk of tumours of the brain, acoustic nerve and parotid gland (includes Japanese INTERPHONE Study). | |
| Details | Cases of meningioma, glioma, pituitary gland tumor, and acoustic neuroma (diagnosed between December 2000 and November 2004 from 30 hosptials in the Tokyo area) were collected and evaluated for correlations with mobile phone use as part of the INTERPHONE study. In an initial paper (2006), the authors report on cases of acoustic neuroma (n = 101) collected from in and around Tokyo, and correlations with mobile phone RF exposoure. A control population (n = 339) was also used for comparison. The authors report no significant correlation with acoustic neuroma (OR = 0.73, 95% CI 0.43-1.23) when all results were pooled, or when short (<4 yrs), medium (4-8 yrs), or long (>8 yrs) term use or cumulative talk time (<300 hrs, 300-900 hrs, >900 hrs) was evaluated. Laterality of mobile phone use was also not associated with acoustic neuroma incidence. In a subsequent study, the authors report on glioma (n = 88), meningioma (n = 132), and pituitary gland tumors (n = 102), a total of 322 cases and 683 individually matched controls). The authors report that with "regular" mobile phone use (defined within the Interphone protocol as at least 1 call per week for the last 6 months) there was no statistically significant correlation (glioma OR=1.22, 95% 0.63-2.37; meningioma OR=0.7, 95% CI 0.42-1.16; pituitary gland tumor OR=0.9, 95% CI 0.51-1.61). In further evaluation, there was also no dose response pattern when the subject population was stratified in terms of use, no correlation with laterality, and no correlation with 10+ years of use. When the authors applied an SAR estimation technique to map SAR (assuming max power from different general phone form factor types) in relation to a 3-D MRI image of the tumors and expressing it in terms of max cumulative SAR per hour, they found a large although non-significant trend (OR = 5.84, 95% CI 0.96-35.60) between tumors and cummulative time of exposure. The authors emphasize the difficulties in controlling recall bias and suggest this may have had a large influence in these trends. Overall study findings: OR = 1.22; 95% CI 0.63-2.37 - glioma, OR = 0.70; 95% CI 0.42-1.16 - meningioma, OR = 5.84; 95% CI 0.96-35.60 - highest estimated SAR category, OR = 0.73; 95% CI 0.43-1.23 - acoustic neuroma, no ipsilateral association, no 10+ yr association. An engineering paper (2008) describes the SAR estimations used to map RF dose within different brain tumors from MRI images of patients. The study used 4x generic phone form factors and antenna types to estimate exposures. A related study applied their own numerical model to determine exposure from mobile phones using FDTD calculations. The numerical models included a heterogeneous TARO model of the left side of the head with major anatomical features as well as a homogeneous head model. The authors report prior modeling may have overestimated SAR in the frontal and parietal lobes and underestimated in the occipital, cerebellum, and brain stem. The new exposure assessment method showed good correlation in the temporal, parietal, and frontal lobes where most of the gliomas in the Japanese Interphone data set occured. A subsequent dosimetry paper using data from 76 pone models from the Interphone study suggested that some general prediction of regional SAR distribution could be made by grouping similar phone models together, but the variations that could occur in the position of holding the phone precluded a detailed SAR distribution to be estimated from phone model information. In regards to acoustic neuromas, the authors reported "A significantly increased risk was identified for mobile phone use for >20 min/day on average with risk ratios of 2.74 at 1 year before diagnosis, and 3.08 at 5 years before diagnosis...The increased risk identified for mobile phone users with average call duration >20 min/day should be interpreted with caution, taking into account the possibilities of detection and recall biases. However, we could not conclude that the increased risk was entirely explicable by these biases, leaving open the possibility that mobile phone use increased the risk of acoustic neuroma" (Sato et al. 2011). AUTHORS' ABSTRACT: Sata et al. 2016 (IEEE #6416): The aim of this study was to examine whether incidence of malignant neoplasms of the central nervous system from 1993 to 2010 has increased among young people in Japan, and whether the increase could be explained by increase in mobile phone use. Joinpoint regression analysis of incidence data was performed. Subsequently, the expected incidence rate was calculated assuming that the relative risk was 1.4 for those who used mobile phones more than 1640 h cumulatively. Annual percent change was 3.9% (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.6-6.3) for men in their 20s from 1993 to 2010, 12.3% (95% CI, 3.3-22.1) for women in their 20s from 2002 to 2010, 2.7% (95% CI, 1.3-4.1) for men in their 30s from 1993 to 2010, and 3.0% (95% CI, 1.4-4.7) for women in their 30s from 1993 to 2010. Change in incidence rates from 1993 to 2010 was 0.92 per 100,000 people for men in their 20s, 0.83 for women in their 20s, 0.89 for men in their 30s, and 0.74 for women in their 30s. Change in expected incidence rates from 1993 to 2010 was 0.08 per 100,000 people for men in their 20s, 0.03 for women in their 20s, 0.15 for men in their 30s, and 0.05 for women in their 30s. Patterns in sex-, age-, and period-specific incidence increases are inconsistent with sex-, age-, and period-specific prevalence trends, suggesting the overall incidence increase cannot be explained by heavy mobile phone use. AUTHORS' ABSTRACT: Sato et al. 2017 (IEEE #6713): The purpose of this study was to clarify ownership and usage of mobile phones among young patients with brain tumors in Japan. The subjects of this study were patients with brain tumors diagnosed between 2006 and 2010 who were between the ages of 6 and 18 years. The target population for the analysis was 82 patients. Patients were divided into two groups: 16 patients who were mobile phone owners 1 year before diagnosis, and 66 patients who did not own mobile phones (non-owners). Using data on the mobile phone ownership rate obtained from three general-population surveys, we calculated the expected number of mobile phone owners. The three age-adjusted standardized ownership ratios were 0.83 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.56-1.22), 0.51 (95% CI: 0.24-1.04), and 0.75 (95% CI: 0.42-1.32). The mobile phone ownership prevalence among the young Japanese patients with brain tumors in the current study does not differ from available estimates for the general population of corresponding age. However, since the use of mobile phones among children is increasing annually, investigations into the health effects of mobile phone use among children should continue. AUTHORS' ABSTRACT: Sato et al. 2017 (IEEE #6890): This study aimed to clarify the distribution of the ear side of mobile phone use in the general population of Japan and clarify what factors are associated with the ear side of mobile phone use. Children at elementary and junior high schools (n = 2,518) and adults aged e20 years (n = 1,529) completed an Internet-based survey. Data were subjected to a logistic regression analysis. In children, due to the tendency to use the dominant hand, we analyzed the factors associated with the use of right ear in right-handed people. Statistically significant differences were observed only in talk time per call (odds ratio (OR) = 2.17; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.223.99). In adults, due to the tendency to use the left ear, we analyzed factors associated with the use of left ear in right-handed people. Significant differences were observed in those aged 3039 years (OR = 2.55; 95% CI: 1.793.68), those aged 4049 years (OR = 3.08; 95% CI: 2.154.43), those aged >50 years (OR = 1.85; 95% CI: 1.202.85), and in those with a percentage of total talk time when using mobile phones at work of 51100% (OR = 1.75; 95% CI: 1.212.55). We believe that future epidemiological studies on mobile phone use can be improved by considering the trends in mobile phone use identified in this study. AUTHORS' ABSTRACT: Sato et al. 2019 (IEEE #7072): Over 20 years have passed since the initial spread of mobile phones in Japan. Epidemiological studies of mobile phone use are currently being conducted around the world, but scientific evidence is inconclusive. The present study aimed to simulate the incidence of malignant brain tumors in cohorts that began using mobile phones when they first became popular in Japan. Mobile phone ownership data were collected through an Internet-based questionnaire survey of subjects born between 1960 and 1989. The proportion of mobile phone ownership between 1990 and 2012 was calculated by birth cohort (1960s, 1970s, and 1980s). Subsequently, using the ownership proportion, the incidence of malignant brain tumors was calculated under simulated risk conditions. When the relative risk was set to 1.4 for 1,640 h or more of cumulative mobile phone use and the mean daily call duration was 15 min, the incidence of malignant brain tumors in 2020 was 5.48 per 100,000 population for the 1960s birth cohort, 3.16 for the 1970s birth cohort, and 2.29 for the 1980s birth cohort. Under the modeled scenarios, an increase in the incidence of malignant brain tumors was shown to be observed around 2020. |
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| Findings | Effects | |
| Status | Completed With Publication | |
| Principal Investigator | Tokyo Women's Medical University - yamaguch@research.twmu.ac.jp | |
| Funding Agency | INTERPHONE (IARC) coordinated studies, MIC, Japan | |
| Country | JAPAN | |
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