Non-ionizing radiation as possible carcinogen

ABSTRACT

The advent of wireless technologies has revolutionized the way we communicate. The steady upsurge in the use of mobile phone all over the world in the last two decades, while triggered economic growth, has caused substantial damage to the environment, both directly and indirectly. The electromagnetic radiation generated from mobile phones, radio-based stations, and phone towers, high-voltage power lines have been reported which leads to the variety of health scares such as the risk of cancer in human beings and adverse effects in animals, birds, etc. Though the usage of such radiation emitting from mobile phones has risen steeply, there is a lack of proper knowledge about the associated risks. The review provides the latest research evidence based both on in vitro studies, in vivo studies, and possible gaps in our knowledge. Moreover, the present review also summarizes available literature in this subject, reports and studies which will help to form guidelines for its exposure limits to the public.

Abbreviations: Continuous Wave: CW; Code Division Multiple Access: CDMA; Global System for Mobile Communications: GSM; Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cell: PBMC; Radiofrequency: RF; Radiofrequency radiation: RFR; Universal Mobile Telecommunications System: UMTS; Wideband Code Division Multiple Access: WCDMA; Specific Absorption Rate: SAR; National Toxicology Program: NTP; amplitude-modulated or amplitude-modulation: AM; Electromagnetic frequencies: EMF; confidence interval: CI; Gigahertz: GHz; odds ratio: OR; incidence ratio: IR; reactive oxygen species: ROS; specific absorption rate: SAR; International Agency of Research on Cancer: IARC; single-strand breaks: SSB; double-strand breaks: DSB (7,12-Dimethylbenz[a]anthracene): DMBA; Hour: h; international commission on non-ionizing radiation protection: ICNIRP; extremely low frequency: ELFl; microtesla: mT; Gigahertz: GHz; hertz: Hz; decibel: dB; kilometer: Km; Watt per square meter: W/m²; Hour: h; positron emission tomography: PET

KEYWORDS:

• Radiofrequency Radiation
• electromagnetic field
• mobile phone
• biological effect

Authors’ contributions

S G was major contributor in manuscript preparation. R S S designed and analyzed the manuscript. R S guided in designing, analysis and corresponding.

Acknowledgments

We show the gratitude to Indian Council of Medical Research, Delhi for financial support for this review study.

Competing interests

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Additional information

Funding

This review study is funded by Indian Council of Medical Research, Delhi.