Children’s nervous systems are still developing, and there are fears that their smaller head circumferences could allow radiation to penetrate deeper into their brains. But the study — the first to look specifically at children and the risk of cancer from cellphones — found that brain tumor patients were no more likely to be regular phone users than control subjects who did not have cancer.
“If mobile phone use would be a risk factor, you’d expect cancer patients to have a higher amount of usage,” said Professor Martin Roosli, who conducted the study at the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute in Basel, Switzerland. In the meantime, they said, people who are concerned should consider using an ear piece or the phone’s speaker function.