'No evidence' of mobile phone cancer risk

There is still "no convincing evidence" that mobile phones can adversely affect human health, according to a major new report released today.

The comprehensive review of scientific studies, by the Health Protection Agency's Independent Advisory Group on Non-ionising Radiation (Agnir), states that despite the "substantial" amount of recent research the only established risk is using a phone while driving.

Having combed through hundreds of studies, the group found that while there had been a number of reports about the risk of cancer caused by mobile phones, none of these findings had been replicated, either in the same laboratory or in another team's lab.

Professor Anthony Swerdlow, chairman of the advisory group and an epidemiologist at the Institute of Cancer Research said: "There has now been a very large amount of research conducted, which wasn't true 10 years ago, and we have much firmer information than we had on several areas, for instance symptoms, cognitive effects, brain tumours, than we had then."

He added that you "can't prove negatives" in science, but that there was "accumulating reassurance" about a lack of health effects and that the field was moving "in that direction".

The Health Protection Agency said it "supports and appreciates [the] thorough review" but would continue with a "precautionary" response while keeping the science under review. The agency recommends that "excessive" use of mobile phones by children should be minimised.