Sydney Morning Herald - 29/11/00
NO FUNDS FOR STUDY ON MOBILES CANCER LINK
Julle Robothom
Medical Writer
The Federal Government has pulled the plug on a scientific investigation into links between mobile phones and genetic changes that may lead to cancer.
This is despite the research identifying significant alterations to the DNA of mice exposed to radiation. Previously, changes in DNA have been associated with cancer. The research, conducted by Dr Pamela Sykes at Adelaide's Flinders University was one of the first projects announced two years ago under a $4 million fund to study the effects of mobile phones on health. At the time the Federal Health Minister, Dr Wooldridge, commended its "scientific excellence". But a spokesman for the National Health and Medical Research Council, which administers the scheme, said Dr Sykes application for further funding had been rejected because "the original hypothesis was not supported by data from the experiments."
Dr Sykes' research looked at the changes in DNA, known as inversions, of 10 specially bred mice exposed to half an hour a day of 900 megahertz of radiation, the same frequency as mobile phones. Dr Sykes hypothesised that radiation exposure might lead to an increase in these inversions, which were "known to be common events in cancer". In fact, her team found a decrease. However, Dr Sykes said this finding was potentially just as important because any change from the normal rate of naturally occurring inversions might be significant. "Everything in life is a balance. High blood pressure can be bad, but so is low blood pressure," she said. Dr Sykes said she had no alternative funding to continue her research. She wanted to repat the experiment with 50 mice, and to examine how soon the DNA changes took effect.
Without the opportunity to repeat and refine them, the original results had little weight. "Doing something once just isn't science," she said. Dr Sykes will present the findings to the Clinical Oncological Society of Australia conference in Adelaide today. She will tell the meeting that changes in the rate of DNA inversions are likely to affect the repair of genetic material, "and hence may play a role in tumour formation." The head of the cancer control program at the South Eastern Sydney Area Health Service, Professor Bernard Stewart, said that without more positive evidence that mobiles were harmful, scientists would have to compete for funding with other research areas. It was revealed yesterday that all mobile phones in Britain will carry health warnings about the dangers of excessive use, particularly for children.
Response from Australian EMF Researcher Don Maisch
As for the article in the Sydney Morning Herald - 29/11/00 NO FUNDS FOR STUDY ON MOBILES CANCER LINK it must be pointed out that the NH&MRC's expert group on mobile phone research priorities, referred to in the article, relies upon a scientist, from Motorola, for advice on mobile phone research and he is on their expert committee. This is in spite of an earlier written assurance from the NH&MRC that members from the telecommunications industry would not be their expert research committee.
In effect this gives the mobile phone industry effective control over research directions in Australia, even though the Motorola scientist has apparently given assurances that his employment will not effect his advice on the NH&MRC expert committee.
How many of us still believe in the tooth fairy?
The Telcos have learned from the "Tobacco Wars" saga that it was 'science' that eventually led to the massive litigation problems that the tobacco industry now has to deal with. From the Telcos point of view it makes good business sence to try to control the science to insure that the same does not happen to telecommunications.
Don
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an excellent overview of the current political/scientific
cellular phone situation by B. Blake Levitt, an expert in the field.
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