New Study Adds to Suspicions that Heavy Cell Phone Use Could Lead to Cancer

Though no study thus far has been able to produce clear evidence that cell phones cause cancer, suspicions have long been aroused regarding the device currently categorized as "2b" on the carcinogenic scale, signifying that it is potentially cancer-causing. However, an ominous new study conducted by researchers at Tel Aviv University has identified increased risk factors among those considered "heavy" cell phone users.

Led by Dr. Yaniv Hamzany of the Sackler Faculty of Medicine, the researcher said he decided to look for clues in individuals' saliva as cell phones are frequently placed close to the salivary gland when in use. If cell phones do in fact cause cancer, the evidence would be there, he and his colleagues hypothesized.

They examined the saliva content of 20 patients deemed "heavy users" -- defined as speaking on their phones for a minimum of eight hours per month (though the researchers point out that some of the participants spoke as much as four and five times that amount) -- to a control group of deaf patients who either did not use a cell phone or used it for strictly non-verbal activities, such as texting.

In doing so, they found that those who talked on their cell phone frequently showed a "significant" increase in all salivary oxidative stress measurements studied.

"This suggests that there is considerable oxidative stress on the tissue and glands which are close to the cell phone when in use," Hamzany said.

The damage caused by oxidative stress, which affects every part of the cell, is linked to cellular and genetic mutations that lead to tumors, and while the researchers admit the results don't prove a conclusive cause and effect relationship between cell phone use and cancer, they argue that they point to a new direction for further research.

One such potential avenue, the researchers said, would be to analyze an individual's saliva prior to exposure a cell phone and then again after several intense minutes of use. This, Hamanzy argues, would allow researchers to determine whether there is an immediate response, such as a rise in molecules that indicate oxidative stress.

The study was published in the journal Antioxidants and Redox Signaling.