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any low incident health problems associated with use of mobile phones. FDA continues to work with all parties, including other federal agencies and industry, to assure that research is undertaken to provide the necessary answers to the out- standing questions about the safety of mobile phones.
What is known about cases of human cancer that have been reported in users of
Some people who have used mobile phones have been diagnosed with brain cancer. But it is important to understand that this type of cancer also occurs among people who have not used mobile phones. In fact, brain cancer occurs in the U.S. popu- lation at a rate of about 6 new cases per 100,000 people each year. At that rate, assuming 80 million users of mobile phones (a number increas- ing at a rate of about 1 million per month), about 4800 cases of brain cancer would be expected each year among those 80 million people, whether or not they used their phones. Thus it is not possible to tell whether any individual's cancer arose because of the phone, or whether it would have happened anyway. A key question is whether the risk of getting a particular form of cancer is greater among people who use mobile phones than among the rest of the population. One way to answer that question is to com- pare the usage of mobile phones
among people with brain cancer with the use of mobile phones among appropriately matched peo- ple without brain cancer. This is called a
What is FDA's role concerning the safety of mobile phones?
Under the law, FDA does not review the safety of radiation emitting con- sumer products such as mobile phones before marketing, as it does with new drugs or medical devices. However, the agency has authority to take action if mobile phones are shown to emit radiation at a level that is hazardous to the user. In such a case, FDA could require the manu- facturers of mobile phones to notify users of the health hazard and to repair, replace or recall the phones so that the hazard no longer exists.
Although the existing scientific data do not justify FDA regulatory actions at this time, FDA has urged the mobile phone industry to take a number of steps to assure public safety. The agency has recom- mended that the industry:
•Support needed research into pos- sible biological effects of RF of the type emitted by mobile phones;
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